


Remembrance

by Blizzaurus (Pisara)



Category: La casa de papel | Money Heist (TV)
Genre: A healthy serving of fluff as well as angst, Advent Calendar, Christmas, F/M, Huddling For Warmth, Hurt/Comfort, Mistletoe, Mutual Pining, Snowball Fight, Snowed In, a modern Persuasion AU, and other fun stuff, and since this is a winter fic do expect, which means
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-01
Updated: 2019-12-25
Packaged: 2021-02-26 00:22:16
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 25
Words: 36,148
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21634342
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pisara/pseuds/Blizzaurus
Summary: After her husband strikes her one time too many, Raquel packs up her bags and drives off with her daughter, leaving only the divorce papers in her wake. Her destination is a small town of Villanieve in Northern Spain where she intends to spend the holiday season and hopefully return knowing what the hell to do next.But fate won't grant her the peaceful and boring Christmas she so desperately wishes for. The only neighbor to the small and remote cottage she rented ends up being a convicted criminal on probation, and not just any convicted criminal; it is the very man she arrested 8 years ago for the biggest bank robbery in the history of Spain.In any other case, encountering such a bitter adversary would have a difficult time fazing a hardened cop like Raquel - but Sergio Marquina is different.He also happens to be the love of her life.***An advent calendar fic: Updated every day for the first 24 days of December
Relationships: Raquel Murillo/Professor | Sergio Marquina
Comments: 514
Kudos: 528





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> 1\. About the timeline of this fic: 
> 
> In this AU, the heist happened 8 years ago, but Raquel and Sergio's ages remain the same. This means I have had to give some other characters an age lift so that Rio, for example, wouldn't have been an actual kid when he was recruited lol
> 
> Here is the guide to the age changes:
> 
> Nairobi - 2 years older than in the show  
> Tokyo - 3 years older than in the show  
> Denver - 4 years older than in the show  
> Rio - 8 years older than in the show
> 
> And other ages worth noting:
> 
> Cincinnati - 8 years old  
> Verona - 3 years old
> 
> 2\. This fic will be updated with a short chapter every day. The timing probably won't always be too consistent, but I'll try to aim for an early evening (European time)
> 
> 3\. Yes, this is essentially a modern Persuasion AU. So Jane Austen fans, rejoice!

This should be everything, then.

Raquel was sitting cross-legged on her living room carpet, surveying everything she'd gathered there; she had her driver's license, passport, social security card, birth certificate and copies of those documents, several changes of outfits folded in front of her, keepsakes, untraceable credit cards and a prepaid phone. It was far from everything she owned, but not everything would fit into her suitcase. Some sacrifices would have to be made.

She glanced at the graduation gown she had laid by her side in the vain hope that magically some space would open up for it. She pushed it away. In the end, it was only stuff.

A noise came from upstairs. It sounded like a creak of the floorboards. Raquel became very still, each muscle in her body tensing. She could only safely breathe after no other sound had followed it in half a minute.

She had no plan for the case of Alberto waking up in the middle of the night, seeing her side of the bed empty and wandering downstairs to look for her. She hadn't even thought of it and felt foolish. Perhaps she would have needed to plan this more thoroughly. She should have taken at least two weeks to make contingency plans for contingency plans, instead of the half a day it had taken for her to arrive at this decision and implement it.

She shifted to another position to pore over her belongings, ache permeating her body at the simple motion. Perhaps she couldn't have made it another two weeks.

Quiet as a mouse, she began the arduous work of packing. Some items she couldn't fit the first try she simply discarded, panic swelling inside her at every second lost. The clock ticked menacingly on the living room wall. It was possible that her whole plan would hang on just a few minutes, and if she failed, she would forever regret that photo album she tried to shove into her purse.

Finally, it was 4 am and all that was missing was the most precious. She carefully set the suitcase and her purse next to the door and tiptoed upstairs. This was the most dangerous phase, but also the most important. She wouldn't leave without succeeding.

She nudged the door to Paula's room open and stepped inside. The girl was curled up under the duvet, her eyes closed and mouth slightly open, her teddybear tucked in her arms. She looked so tranquil it wrenched at Raquel's heart to disrupt her peace. But there was no other choice. She wound her arms carefully around Paula's sleeping form, praying that the girl would not wake up.

She crouched down one more time to pick up the little backpack Paula had readied. Earlier in the day when she had been alone with her daughter, Raquel had suggested a game; imagine there was a dragon coming to drown the kingdom in the flames of his fiery breath. What would the princess take with her if she had to escape right now?

She'd listened patiently as Paula had explained why the princess would take just these toys, these clothes and these books with her and together they had packed them into her pink backpack. Raquel had promised they'd play the escape part of the game tomorrow morning and asked her to keep everything ready.

Technically, it _was_ tomorrow morning.

With extraordinary care, Raquel carried Paula downstairs. Not a single step of the stairs creaked underneath her feet for which she thanked whichever god it was that was watching over her now.

The car was already running in the driveway. She had the urge to run towards it, but she didn't want to wake up her daughter and alarm her just because her own lungs were shrinking and about to collapse - so immense was the relief of getting out of the house.

But she still had to go back. 

She strapped sleeping Paula into the backseat, brushed a curl of her hair from her forehead with a smile and took a deep breath as if drawing up strength from her. She then walked back inside to go get her own suitcase.

She grabbed the handle quickly with every intention to snatch the bag and _run_, but something was still holding her back. There were certainly no second-thoughts - this decision had been a long time coming and the only thing she felt bad about was not doing it eight years sooner - but there was still one last thing she needed to do.

Raquel walked up to the kitchen counter, took off her ring and set it there with a definite clink. If Alberto seeing that in the morning wouldn't drive in the message, a call from her attorney at 10 am would certainly do so.

She turned around and walked out of the door without looking back.

When she was finally seated in the car and turned the ignition key, she was almost shocked that it worked. The car didn't cough and wheeze. She had imagined the vehicle falling apart just when it was time to leave so many times this past day that it didn't quite feel real that it didn't. 

There were no more obstacles. Not a single thing keeping her from leaving.

The sun was looming behind the treetops in the horizon, painting the sky orange and violent as she pulled from the driveway. It was the most beautiful morning of her life.

* * *

Paula was stirring by the time Raquel was exiting the M-40 highway.

"Mama, why are we in the car?" she asked drowsily, her eyes still half-closed. "It's too early for school."

"There won't be school for a while. We're taking a headstart at your break," Raquel, attempting a cheerful tone.

"Does that mean I don't have to take that math exam on Tuesday?"

Raquel smiled a little. "No, cariño. The math exam is canceled."

"Oh wow, nice!"

The girl looked a little more alert now, excitement seeping in. "Where are we going? And where is pa-"

"We're taking a secret girls' trip to the Pyrenees. I have rented a cottage from a nice little village. You can ski and skate and play in the snow there every day."

Paula was already bouncing up and down in her seat. "Are we there yet?"

A throaty laugh escaped her. "We have barely even left, cariño. It's going to take a while. At least 5 hours."

At the girl's disgruntled expression, Raquel brought a soft smile on her face. "Just be patient. I promise that when we get there, it's going to be the best Christmas ever."

Paula grinned, and so did Raquel. It was as if the same kind of childlike excitement had filled her as well.

It felt good to be free.


	2. Chapter 2

Raquel hadn't quite expected _this_ much snow.

They barely managed to make it all the way to the cottage before the tires of the car got stuck in the snow. The only way she was able to get her and her daughter out was by wrenching the door open using excessive force - which left it worryingly loose when she closed it.

_Great. Just great._

At least Paula thought sinking into the snow like quicksand was exciting. She couldn't stop giggling as she crawled like a seal towards the cottage door all the while Raquel stood up to her knees in the white powder, wondering if all the snow that had hardly ever grazed the surface of Spain all these years had finally broken loose and fallen just here.

Climate change was truly a force to reckon with.

* * *

The cottage looked nice, far nicer than it deserved to look for what she'd paid for it. It consisted of one bedroom, kitchen and a cozy living room with a fireplace, all of them rustically furnished. But she didn't have the time to admire the inside for too long.

The first thing she did after bringing their bags inside was clearing the driveway while Paula played in the snow she shoveled to the side of the road. It took most of the day, and by the end of the task she was so exhausted she ended up collapsing on the couch inside the cottage.

A few hours later, her insistingly ringing phone woke her up. Her eyes still closed, Raquel fumbled for it, found it in her purse and lifted it somewhere in the vicinity of her ear.

"Hello?" she croaked out.

"Raquel!" exclaimed a familiar voice. "What is going on? Yesterday you were at work as usual, and today people keep telling me you took a month's leave all of a sudden? Should I be worried?"

"There is nothing to worry about, Ángel, she sighed, rubbing her eyes in an effort to return to full consciousness. "I just needed a break. A long one."

He hesitated before replying. "Your husband has told some that you lost it and kidnapped his daughter."

"Well of course he _has_."

"Is it true?"

When she didn't reply, he continued hastily: "Raquel, please tell me right now if the same thing is happening again. You know… After the Royal Mint case."

The words paralyzed her.

For a brief moment, she could do little more than draw one slow, ragged breath as if desperately trying to suck in the air that had fled after the memory punched her in the gut. It was not fair of Angel to remind her. She'd done such a good job keeping it all locked away for some time now, and the last thing she needed was more regrets to drown her at this moment.

"That was eight years ago," she finally exhaled.

"I know, but I remember how bad the fallout was for you. You weren't at work for half a year, for god's sake. Can you blame me for being worried?"

"What is happening now is not even remotely similar to what happened then." She closed her eyes, trying to reign in her frustration. "The fact of the matter is that I have left Alberto, and he is not taking it well, just as I thought he wouldn't."

"Really?" he said, his voice suddenly pitched high.

At least he'd tried not to sound too gratified by the news.

"You can tell anyone curious that I am perfectly in my right to take my daughter away, and they are free to thoroughly explore my divorce by the watercooler, but let them know that this is not related in any shape or form to the incident 8 years ago!"

As she ranted, she caught some movement in the corner of her eye. Paula had walked inside the room, unsmiling.

The girl was old enough to know exactly what divorce meant. Had she heard her use the word?

 _Shit_. This was not how she wanted to tell her.

"You shouldn't be calling this number anyway," she hissed into the phone. "I don't want my husband contacting me or anyone tracking my location. I need to use a prepaid one for a while."

"Can I have the number for that then?"

A few seconds that seemed to stretch until eternity passed.

"You know what Angel?" she said impatiently. "I'd rather not focus on work during this vacation. We'll talk when we talk."

Raquel had already hung up before he could answer. She dropped the phone like a hot potato onto the cushions. She really hoped she hadn't made a mistake in taking the call.

However, now it was time to focus on her daughter. She gestured Paula to come closer and crouched down with a smile on her face.

"How about we go get some turrón from the store and watch a Christmas movie together? Wouldn't that be a fun plan for the night?"

Paula nodded, but she didn't look as cheerful about the promise of her favorite holiday treat as Raquel would have hoped.

She inwardly sighed. It seemed like there was no avoiding the Alberto discussion for long.

* * *

There was one little store in the whole village which was only open during daylight hours. Raquel had to hurry to make it there in time in order not to disappoint her daughter. 

They got there just a few minutes before the shop was supposed to close, but luckily it seemed that the locals here weren't as sticklers about time than in the capital. The elderly shop lady was still chatting leisurely with her friend by the register while Paula dumped almost half of the snack shelf into Raquel's basket. She didn't have the heart to protest. The next few days would be hard for the girl if she was to explain everything soon.

When they finally reached the register, the shop lady greeted them like an old friend. 

"Hello, sweetheart. Always nice to see new faces here. Lot of snow this winter, isn't there? But I'm sure your little girl won't mind. There is so much fun to be had in the snow. Oh look at all this turrón, someone is going to have a delicious evening ahead! If you come earlier in the day tomorrow, my friend Lorena is coming round with homemade marzipan. You would like that, wouldn't you, you little angel. She'll give you as many free samples as you want. Now, where are you staying?"

Relieved that the woman had finally stopped to inhale, Raquel answered quickly. "We're staying in a cottage on the slope of the mountain. Few kilometers from here."

The lady raised her brow. "There? Oh no, dear…"

She then leaned a little bit closer, her little lips pursed in a concerned frown. "Are you quite sure it is safe for your little girl there?"

"What do you mean?"

After glancing around as if what she was about relay was extremely scandalous, she whispered: "Because of the criminal."

"The criminal?"

"There is a felon residing on the same slope, in one of those few cottages scattered there. Mind you, I don't think he was convicted for anything violent, but I would still be hesitant to let my grandchildren go sledding around there. He is still on probation, you know."

Huh. _So that was why the rent was so cheap._

Raquel brought her most carefree smile on her face. "I think we'll be quite safe there. I'm actually a police officer."

This brought on another flood of questions and babble that she and Paula were able to escape only after 20 minutes. Luckily, Paula seemed a little cheered up by the exciting information.

"Mama, do you think we'll get to see the criminal?"

"Absolutely not," Raquel answered definitely.

She had already decided it in her mind; the only way she'd let any criminals bother her during this Christmastime was over her dead body.


	3. Chapter 3

In the end, Paula took it all with surprising calmness.

At first, she had been angry, stomping around the little cottage and demanding to go back home right now. It was not a response to the divorce news which the girl seemed to have already been preparing herself for. No, what she couldn't understand was why she couldn't see her dad for a while.

She only became more angry and frustrated at Raquel's watered-down, feeble explanations. Eventually, she came to the decision that it was more respectful to tell her the truth. So she sat her down and explained gently and carefully what the terms emergency protective order, temporary custody and restraining order meant. She chose not to relay the details of what Alberto had done to her, but what little she told seemed to make her understand. Paula grew quiet.

Unable to read the emotions on the girl's face, Raquel showered her in hugs and kisses, telling her that they'd be okay and she'd keep her safe. She was expecting Paula to cry, but she did no such thing. She reacted so little it worried Raquel.

However, on that night when Raquel was standing in the kitchen, staring out of the window with a mug of tea in her hands and dwelling in the past eight years, Paula came.

Raquel became aware of her presence when the little girl wrapped her hands around her and hugged her from behind.

"It's going to be alright, mama," she whispered in her sweetest voice.

It was Raquel herself that let the tears fall at that moment.

* * *

For the next week, the pair pampered themselves. Every day was either spent outside, sledding and building creatures and fortresses out of snow or inside, playing games and watching an endless array of cheesy romantic movies with sweets and pizza for dinner.

"Eww," Paula giggled when the heroine of the movie they were watching kissed the male lead.

"Indeed," Raquel answered and took a sip of her wine. "We don't need any yucky men."

"No!" the girl enthusiastically agreed.

The girl fell silent at the next scene where the main character decorated the Christmas tree with her family.

A quiet sort of sorrow filled with Raquel. They had left a handsome Christmas tree behind at home. Paula had been so looking forward to decorating it. It was her favorite part of Christmas

She drew Paula closer and placed a kiss on her forehead, a plan already forming in her head.

_She was going to give her daughter the Christmas of her dreams, dammit._

* * *

When the sun was just setting and Paula was still asleep, Raquel left the cottage with Paula's red sled and a little axe. There was an abundance of small fir trees growing all around them. She imagined it wouldn't be too hard to cut down one, hoist it on the sled and drag it back. Before her daughter even opened her eyes, a Christmas miracle of a tree would be standing in the middle of the living room, just waiting to be decorated.

Raquel had to descend farther down the slope than she would have liked to find more stunted fir trees that would actually fit through the door, but she was confident that her daughter would see the note she'd left her and call her if she woke up.

She finally caught the sight of the prettiest specimen in the entire forest and giddily waded through the snow to it. She could already see the glee on Paula's face when she saw it.

However, what she hadn't accounted for was how long it truly took to fell one small tree.

She was lucky that there was no one to see her struggle. It truly was embarrassing. She had received training in almost every weapon imaginable, but for some reason, she was as clumsy with the axe as a drunken toddler swinging a stick. It was simply too heavy for her.

Still, she gritted her teeth and continued hacking.

When it finally fell down, a triumphant cry slipped halfway past her lips. She abruptly stopped, her breath catching when she saw _them_. Two silver-furred wolves had appeared between the trees, gazing at her with gleaming eyes.

The axe slipped down onto the snow with a thump.

Cold dread flooded her lungs. At first, she could do nothing but stare, every muscle of her body petrified.

Then she thought about Paula. It was enough for her to regain some sense of control. She took one careful step back, maintaining eye contact with the beast the whole time.

 _Don't run_ , she reminded herself. _Don't let your fear show._

As she slowly backed away, she picked up a small rock. A weapon might come in useful, and the axe was too far for her to dare to go for it.

Contrary to what she'd hoped for, the wolves started approaching her. She took one step farther away, but they matched it with a twice as long stride. She tried to move faster.

But then her feet got caught in a branch and she stumbled.

Next thing she knew, she was on her back on the snow with hair in her mouth. She immediately tried to get back up, but only managed to lift her head just in time to see the wolves charge. Her heart stopped.

One warning shot rang. Another followed.

The air vibrated with the thunderous sounds, causing the wolves to stop.

The third shot of a rifle came from somewhere nearby. The wolves let out something that sounded awfully like a scared whimper and turned on their tracks. They fled, their swinging tails the last thing Raquel saw before they vanished back into the woods.

Next, she could hear the sound of footsteps. It had to be the hunter that had scared the wolves away. Tears of relief sprang into her eyes.

"Oh thank you, thank you so much," she spluttered, trying to hoist herself up. It was hard with the slippery snow breaking apart underneath her fingers and her tangled hair obscuring her vision.

Through the veil of her hair, she saw the man reach out his hand.

"It's alright, señora," he said softly, in a somewhat familiar cadence.

She grasped it gratefully, allowing him to draw her up.

Only as she saw his face, she realized why she had recognized the voice. In an instant, a cold blast slammed through her.

They both stared at each other in frozen shock.

It was none other than Sergio Marquina.

The last man on Earth she wanted to see again.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry if I haven't replied to all the comments. With the pace I'm posting this fic, it is hard to catch them all. But be assured that I'm thankful for each and every one. They really keep me going, and I'll try to answer as best as I can!

8 years ago, Sergio Marquina and his team had walked out of the Royal Mint exactly 2,433 million richer.

The operation had taken 11 grueling days, but it had been all worth it. There hadn't been a single hitch in the plan. The hostages had been docile, all of his colleagues had made it in one piece, not a single identity had been discovered and the head investigator had been an idiot who had even missed the false leads Sergio had planted on his way. Except for some minor internal conflict caused by secret relationships inside the group, everything had gone _perfectly._

More than perfect, in fact. All because of his dearest Raquel.

At first, he'd been worried that sub-inspector Murillo's intelligence and natural acumen would bottleneck the operation. That concern ended up being unfounded. The head inspector barely even tipped his ear to Raquel's suggestions, all to his own doom. He was lucky she hadn't been in charge.

However, he was soon consumed by an even greater fear when he realized his mission to keep close to her was yielding wildly different results than he had expected. The first time he'd woken up in her arms and realized that she was the only thing that mattered, he'd been scared shitless.

But in the end, it had all worked out.

Without a moment's hesitation, she'd said yes when he'd asked her to run away with him. He hadn't quite believed his eyes when he'd seen her a few weeks later in fulfillment of that promise. Raquel, the best thing that had ever happened to him, the love of his life, was standing on the white sands of Palawan with a radiant smile on her face.

But there she'd been. It had been the beginning of the happiest part of his life.

* * *

_8 years earlier, somewhere in the Philippines._

"I'm dreaming," he exhaled once again into her hair.

"I'd really need you awake for the next part," she answered with a laugh before sinking her fingers into his hair and drawing him into a kiss.

He was half-submerged in water, half-lying on a sandy shore with Raquel on top of him, chasing the taste of ocean from her lips. Somewhere along the way from their house to the restaurant, they had ended up jumping into the water and next, entwined with each other with sodden clothing clinging to their skin, their mouths fused. Not that Sergio particularly minded.

He couldn't help but continue the next time they broke apart to draw breath.

"If I had known what would happen by going to that cafe and offering a beautiful woman my phone, I would have camped out there years ago."

What he wanted to say was that he would have started carrying out elaborate robberies a lot earlier, but that he kept inside for obvious reasons.

"Stop it," she said breathlessly. "If I wanted romance right now, I wouldn't be desecrating this poor beach with you. Now, be quick or we'll miss the reservation."

"I think," Sergio said, kissing her deeply and ardently. "We have desecrated enough beaches to last a lifetime."

"I don't see you stopping," she commented, her hand drifting lower. Suddenly, she stopped, a gasp spilling from her lips as she glimpsed at something behind them. Then she buried her face in his shoulder with an embarrassed laugh.

"Tourists?" 

"Tourists," she confirmed, looking up again. "And with cameras. Let's get moving before we make it into that poor family's vacation album. If we truly want to start on that path, we need to hire a professional, you know."

But Sergio didn't want to lift himself up just yet. He gazed up at her instead, taking in her like this was the very first time he saw her all over again. He recalled her sweeping into that cafe with tired but indescribably beautiful eyes like it was yesterday. Just seeing them astounded him. A woman with a promising career ahead and a line of suitors at her feet had chosen _him_ and was now in his arms, joking about starting a porn career with him.

His life truly was perfect.

"Oh, I can just _sense_ you doing it again," Raquel smirked as if having read his thoughts.

"I can't help it. I love you."

There was no hesitation in her answer. "I love you too."

He would never get used to hearing that. _How did he get so lucky?_

* * *

They ended up abandoning the dinner reservation in the favor of giddily rushing back home where they would surely be alone. Consumed by the burn for her that never seemed to leave him, he swept her in his arms already at the front gate and crashed his mouth on hers.

Raquel answered the kiss with equal enthusiasm, and it was close they didn't go further than was appropriate in public. But they stopped at the sound of someone letting out a groan.

They both turned their heads to see Andrés, lying on a deckchair with a clear view to where they were standing. His sunglasses had slipped from his nose, but he hadn't bothered - or maybe hadn't been able to push them back. He released another disgruntled noise at the attention.

"Don't mind me. Just rotting here in peace, making the most of life as usual."

Sergio knotted his brow. It was not uncommon to hear such self-deprecating statements from his brother after his condition had taken the turn for the worse at the end of the heist, but it still bothered Sergio. Andrés really wasn't coping with his diminishing functionality well. 

He remembered him furiously protesting against Sergio taking him to Palawan with him, even more so after he'd discovered that the sub-inspector of the case would be joining them there. However, soon after when it came apparent he could no longer pick up small objects, Andrés hadn't felt like complaining about his brothers' help. 

"Don't let your pity for me keep you from getting at it. Hurry off now."

Raquel frowned. "Talk to your brother," she whispered into his ear. The next moment, she'd disappeared inside the house. She'd never really acquired the taste for Andrés' company which was probably a blessing.

"You really could try being more polite to the love of my life," Sergio said and vaulted over the fence.

"I'd more so describe her as the love of your three months," he replied dryly. "She still buying the moving-to-somewhere-warm-to-take-care-of-my-dying-brother story?"

Feeling his stomach churn at the discomposing topic, Sergio looked away. "We have been together for two months, not three."

"Indeed. I'm giving it a month before she finds out, and this whole thing crashes and burns."

"You think so?" Sergio said sharply. "After the tour de force of deception I just pulled off, you can sure as hell bet I'm smart enough to keep her from finding out."

"No, I don't think you'll have any difficulties in keeping the facade up. What I'm questioning is whether you'll _want_ to."

When Sergio looked blankly back at him in return, Andrés sighed. "I know my words cannot make much sense to you. You have had two months of consecutive sex. Talking to you right now is like talking to a newly-made heroine addict quivering at the thought of his next fix so I'm going put it as clearly as possible: are you really planning on lying to her for the rest of your life?"

The words flicked a switch inside him. Next, all of his pent-up frustration and worry about the fact released in a sudden explosion of emotion.

"I have to!" Sergio exclaimed, his face hot. "You know what would happen if I did. She would leave me, maybe even turn both of us in. So yes, I'm going to keep lying. And you know what? I have no qualms on the matter. It's best for all of us."

His brother's simple answer to that was a long, silent look. 

"You really don't know anything about love, brother," he then said with a voice so weary it gave Sergio a pause.

* * *

When he returned to bed with Raquel later that night, the words still haunted him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is part 1 of the flashback chapters.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for taking so long to update! Been busy all day.
> 
> Another flashback chapter today. This one is a bit rough :(

Salva had been withdrawn recently.

She couldn't shake that feeling, and it was growing stronger day by day. Each time they made love, he seemed distant and did not initiate it himself anymore. He didn't draw her into passionate kisses as often as before, and there was a strange tinge of desperation in his voice every time he told her how much he loved her. On top of all that, there was an almost tortured look in his eyes when he thought she wasn't looking. She supposed he was reacting to his brother's worsening condition, but whenever she tried to bring it up, he brushed it aside and assured her with a smile that his brother would be the one in the ten that made it.

Besides, it seemed that he was only like that with _her_.

Perhaps in any other relationship, she would be afraid that he was about to leave her, but it was different with Salva. Whenever she was with him, she just _knew_ that this man wanted to spend the rest of his life with her. And she with him. Nothing made her happier than the thought of it. The assurance of their future together and his love for her was like a lantern burning in her chest, warming her every second of the day.

There was just something bothering him that she needed to figure out.

* * *

Some days later, he woke her up in the middle of the night.

"Raquel, I need to ask you something."

She smiled so hard her cheeks hurt quietly to herself, not turning her head to him at first. Something about his phrasing made her finally realize why he'd been acting so odd lately. When she finally faced him, she cupped his jaw and languidly gazed up at him, her eyes still heavy with sleep. He looked so beautiful in this soft light. 

"Can we talk about this in the morning?" she murmured. "Don't worry, mi alma. My answer is yes. It has been yes for the longest time now. But I really need to sleep now."

She heard a sharp intake of breath from him. "That is... That is not what I wanted to ask."

"Oh."

She didn't cease to caress his skin despite the disappointment. She brushed her thumb over his lips, still smiling tiredly. "Just so that you know then."

"Raquel," he suddenly murmured, desperate. He stilled her hand and brought it away from his face as if her touch gave him pain. It made Raquel frown. "Salva, mi amor, what is wrong?"

"What I wanted to ask is whether your love for me is strong enough to overcome anything. Strong enough that you'd still want me even if there was something terrible in the way of our relationship."

Raquel sat up, suddenly fully awake. "What, why?"

"I just need to now," he insisted, his voice hoarse. 

There was something in his eyes that she did not like. "You're scaring me."

"Just tell me yes, _please_."

"Yes," she confessed truthfully. "…but whatever it is, I don't want to hear it."

He grabbed her hands. "Listen to me, Raquel."

"No," she said, trying to get away, terrified of whatever it was that he had to say. She wanted to hold onto their happiness just for one second longer.

"My real name is Sergio Marquina."

Raquel halted.

That one horrifying sentence was only the beginning of the worst three hours of her life.

* * *

"Raquel, please," Sergio begged once more. The woman had climbed out of bed, clutching the duvet to her chest so that he couldn't see her bare skin. Her face was streaked with tears.

"What more can you possibly have to say to me?" she sobbed, gathering the fabric even firmer against her. "You have already taken everything from me."

"No, I haven't. You chose to follow me here because you love me. And you told me your love was strong enough to bear anything," he attempted, desperately. 

She violently shook her head. "No, not this. You lied to me for months. You _used_ me. I don't even know you. You are a hostage-taker, a criminal!"

Her words were like a punch to the throat. Sergio felt faint. Telling her, no matter how relieved he had felt at first after deciding to do so, was starting to feel like the worst mistake of his life.

"I'm still the same man," he whispered. "My name and profession are the only things I have lied to you about. My love for you was _never_ pretended. Only after one week, I felt so strongly about you I was willing to endanger my life's work. You were the only flaw in my perfect plan, but I didn't care. I only wanted to be with you."

"Is that supposed to make me feel better? I fucking hindered your criminal activity?" Her face twisted in anger. "You have been laughing at me this whole time. Bet it made you feel really clever, getting away with it all and the sub-inspector as an additional prize."

For a moment, she looked so furious Sergio thought she might attack him. He didn't back away or flinch. He probably deserved whatever she wanted to do to him. No physical pain could feel worse than this.   
He felt like someone had reached into his chest and yanked out his heart, stealing the life from him.

But then she turned away, breathing sharply in and out as if about to hyperventilate. "I can't believe how stupid I was. You played me like a fiddle. You humiliated me."

"Raquel…"

"Don't. I don't want to hear you. I can't even look at you. I need to leave."

That was what made Sergio rush to her in panic. Deep in his heart, he knew that if she walked out of that door right now, she would never come back. He wouldn't survive it.

He grabbed her by her shoulders. "Don't. I'm begging you, don't do any drastic decisions right now. You're a passionate woman, and I know right now you feel like burning the world down. But I need you to think of what we have. I need to you remember how certain your 'yes' was tonight. If you ever loved me, stay. At least for the night."

She looked at him coldly in return, but then something flickered in her gaze and the anger made way to an endless pit of sadness.

"I loved Salva. I loved him more than _anything_."

Sergio was too paralyzed to move after hearing those words. It gave Raquel an opportunity to tug on clothes and shove her bag full of miscellaneous items in a mania-like frenzy.

"Don't try to follow me. You'll regret it if you do."

It was the last thing she said before walking out.

* * *

Of course, he was stupid enough to follow her.

After noticing her tail during the layover in Delhi, she didn't even hesitate before calling her colleagues in Spain. So grief-stricken and betrayed she still felt, desperate do anything to get him away from her. It was like the lantern that had been burning bright and warm in her chest had been replaced with a bleeding and aching gash. The pain didn't seem to cease one bit even at the thoughts of the justice that would be carried out soon.

Still, she would be lying if she claimed that shoving him down against the floor of the airport in Madrid and reading him his rights didn't feel good. But only for a minute. That was how long it took before her colleagues rushed to help her, and someone pulled her aside. 

They wouldn't have needed to. Sergio didn't fight back. He lay on the ground, utterly immobile as if having accepted his fate. It was like watching a ragdoll being handled, seeing him roughly wrenched up on his feet and handcuffed. She had to look away. 

Prieto came to her, apparently to praise her for tracking down the criminal all on her own. She couldn't hear a word he said. Her fury had been replaced by regret, and she was crumbling inside.

She couldn't help it. She had to look back at him one last time as the men began dragging him away. Their eyes met.

Reflected on his was complete and utter heartbreak.

After eight years, she still hadn't forgotten that look.


	6. Chapter 6

Sergio's hand immediately slipped from hers as the recognition seeped in.

Neither of them said anything for eternity. Raquel was too stunned to even breathe. Her heart had ceased to beat as she looked at him. 

It was him. It truly was him. He had the same chestnut brown eyes, same wavy hair she used to love raking her fingers through, same dark glasses sitting on the perch of his nose. All that was new was a few silver streaks in his whiskers and hair, and the look in his eyes. She didn't remember him ever regarding her in this way before. There were disbelief and shock in his eyes but also something else she couldn't quite recognize. It was almost as if…

Then his expression settled, and now it was plain on his face. He was looking at her with bone-rattling coldness. It made her heart shrivel.

Not that she had expected any different reaction from him.

"What- what are you doing here?" he finally said, laboriously, as if it was a struggle to choke out the words. 

"What are _you_ doing here?" she countered. 

The realities of this situation were starting to crash in after the question was voiced aloud. If he was here, standing in front of her and studying her like she was some malicious spirit of the forest, it meant that he wasn't in prison, sitting out the sentence of 70+ years he most certainly deserved. What the hell was he doing here, indeed? 

Then fear struck her heart. She was alone with the criminal she'd scorned and sent to prison who was now somehow free and holding a rifle in his hands. She took a step back. The wolves were starting to seem like the more appealing option, after all.

His eyes narrowed as he saw her back away. "For God's sake. I am not going to hurt you. You should know me better than that."

There were plenty of nasty comebacks on the tip of her tongue about the multitude of ways he'd hurt her before, but she opted not to use them. There was nothing to be gained by aggravating him. Instead, she hugged herself and stared down at her feet. Her cheeks felt unbearably hot, and she didn't want him to see how his presence was affecting her. 

"Did you seek me out?" he asked, his tone accusing. "Is this some sort of an added revenge? Because frankly, I cannot buy that out of all the places in Spain-"

Raquel pointed at the fir three lying on the snow. "What does that look like? I'm cutting down a Christmas tree. I'm here on a vacation with my family, not on some lunatic mission to hunt you down."

His eyes flickered at the word 'family' and his gaze shot to her left hand which was, unfortunately for him, gloved. The motion of his eyes was lightning-fast, and they snapped back so quickly it was almost unnoticeable, but Raquel was able to catch it. Flustered, she pushed her hand into her pocket. 

He shook his head vigorously as if to snap himself out of something. "It doesn't matter why you are here. What is important is that you keep out of my way. I'm warning you. Stay away. It's probably best for you and your... _family_ to leave." 

Raquel crossed her arms. "If you are so disturbed by my presence, why don't you leave yourself?"

In a sudden motion, Sergio had rolled up his trouser leg. He then pointed at the clunky, heavy-looking ankle monitor locked around his leg with a shaking finger.

"I cannot step one centimeter off the perimeter of this mountain without alarming every cop in the 50-kilometer radius and being thrown back into jail. I _wish_ I could leave. But no, this is my life now."

_Thanks to you._

The words didn't need to be uttered out loud. They were hanging in the air in any case, an unforgivable truth they couldn't erase.

The following silence was so uncomfortable Raquel briefly considered leaving the tree behind just so that she could flee. But it was Paula she was doing this for, not herself. She couldn't afford to be selfish at the expense of her daughter.

"Don't worry, this won't happen again. You are the last person I'd want to see," she said, moving toward the tree.

"I could say the same to you," Sergio answered with a low voice, watching her go.

She wrapped her arms around the branches and made an attempt to lift the tree. It didn't budge. Perhaps she should have picked out a smaller one, after all. _So small she could just pick it up and run,_ she thought, her face burning as she struggled to grasp a hold of it.

She sensed him materialize behind her. In an instant, he'd wound one of his arms around the tree, his other one taking the rest of it from her hands. His arm brushed hers with its entire length as he did so, and a small gasp tumbled from her lips. His touch had burned her like a hot coal.

She watched, shivering as Sergio hoisted up the three with one yank and plopped it down on the sled with a thump. He secured it tightly with a rope Raquel had brought with her, stood up and brushed the imaginary dust off his hand at the end of it. It all took less than 30 seconds.

"Thank you," she sputtered out, not knowing what else to say.

"Don't go wandering off so far from the road on your own again. There are wolves on these mountains. Not a lot, but some. Don't be stupid."

With that said, he slung the rifle over his shoulder and walked off, his hand clenching and unclenching by his side. He did not cast one look back. Raquel was left staring after him, speechless, her heart beating so hard she could feel it in her fingertips.

* * *

She returned back to the cottage some ten minutes later. Paula had already woken up and was sleepily pouring cereal into her bowl.

"I have a surprise for you," Raquel said wearily and gestured her to come look outside.

Paula ran to the door and the second she saw the tree, she screamed and began bouncing up and down on her feet from excitement. 

Together, they carried the fir tree inside and set it on a makeshift mount in the living room. 

"This is going to be the best Christmas ever," the girl laughed, circling the tree round and round again as if she couldn't believe its existence. 

Raquel who had collapsed on the couch immediately after, the emotions coursing inside her almost suffocating her, had now a completely opposite view on the matter. 


	7. Chapter 7

Raquel couldn’t sleep that night.

Her reunion with Sergio kept replaying in her head, and she couldn’t stop thinking about all the ways she’d appeared meek and weak in front of him. It had been he who had wronged her, so why had she let him look at her like _she_ was the crux of all his problems?

She had simply done her job and sent a criminal where he belonged. The fact that they had been lovers should bear no weight in the matter. She had stopped feeling absolutely anything at all for him the moment he’d told her the truth. And so it was to this day.

Thus, his opinion of her didn’t matter at all.

She shifted her position in the bed again, drawing the blanket up to her jaw with a sigh. She just wished that her heart would stop thundering in her chest so that she could go to sleep.

* * *

In the morning, the urge to flee the place for the fear of running into him again was strong enough for her to slam her suitcase open and start throwing some clothes there.

However, she stopped when Paula appeared in the doorway. ”I cannot find any decorations for the tree.”

”Cariño, I don’t think the cottage has any,” she sighed, closing the suitcase. She couldn’t do it. She couldn’t uproot her daughter again. ”We can go check if the shop has any.”

”No it hasn’t. I looked yesterday. They only had ribbons.”

”I’m sure the tree doesn’t need any more than that to be the prettiest Christmas tree around.”

The girl didn’t look convinced.

Then, her lip started wobbling.

* * *

The nearest hardware store was 50 kilometers away. Raquel inwardly sighed as she looked at the navigator. At least her efforts in keeping the Christmas spirit alive would prevent her from dwelling in Sergio-related thoughts all day.

They arrived at the store 45 minutes later, but as they stepped inside, it immediately became apparent that the trip has been worth it. They were met with the biggest collection of Christmas supplies Raquel had ever seen. Paula immediately ran to them.

While the girl picked her favorites, Raquel took a shopping cart and browsed for anything else they might need for the remaining three weeks they would spend at the cottage. A better snow shovel was on the first place of her mental list.

But as her eyes swept over to the shovel section, she saw it was already occupied. By the person she’d sworn never to encounter again. Her heart jumped up to her throat.

The universe had to hate her.

Sergio wasn’t alone. He had two women and a considerably younger curly-haired man with him. The latter had a snow shovel in his hands which he was swinging around, apparently to test the weight and dexterity. The shovel slammed against the shelf, letting out a loud boom. Sergio snatched the shovel out of his hands, glaring at him. The women were grinning.

They were knockout gorgeous. Both had raven-black hair, one with a short, elegant haircut and the other with her hair styled big and shiny. Although their features and skin tone were different, their faces were the kind to attract just about anyone.

And both were a decade younger than her.

Meanwhile, Raquel’s face was as bare as the day she was born. She had pulled her tangled hair into a messy bun, not expecting to run into anyone during this trip to a remote hardware store, least of all to her ex and two women she couldn’t bear to stand next to.

She immediately ducked so low she was almost lying on top of the cart so that no one would surely see her from behind the shelf. She started wiggling her cart forward with her toes, slowly but surely. Escape was only a few meters a way behind the shield of a taller shelf.

Paula decided to pick just that moment to run up to her, her arms full of decorations.

”Mama, what do you think of these?”

Raquel stooped even lower, ignoring her daughter.

”I like these all, but they didn’t have the star we have at home with the angel holding it. Can we go to another store to see if they have it?”

”Let’s just stick a barbie on top and tape the star on her,” Raquel whispered quickly and kept on going.

”Mama?” Paula said, confused at her mother trying to shake her off and the odd way she was squirming along with the cart. ”Mama!” she yelled at the top of her lungs, getting upset.

It was enough to draw the attention of everyone in the store, including Sergio and the group he was with.

The shelf was not enough cover. They could see her head, and at this point it was so obvious she was trying to make herself small in order to hide from them that it was less mortifying to just straighten her back. She did just that and walked briskly off as if nothing had happened.

_Great. Sergio must think she was stalking her._

She tried not to look at him, focusing on consoling her daughter. Still, she could just feel his gaze boring into the back of her head.

When she returned to the decoration shelf with Paula to look at what she’d got, she sneaked a discreet glance at the group to see if Sergio was watching.

Indeed, he was staring. But not at her. He was gaping at Paula. There was such a deep furrow in his forehead that you could run a river through it. 

Next thing he did was turn to the two women, saying something while gesturing vaguely to her direction, looking paler than before.

Raquel deemed that it was time to leave. She took everything from Paula’s hands, slammed it down onto the cart and started half-running to the register.

But someone stopped in her way just before she could get to the line.

”Cute kid,” said the older dark-haired woman of the two, nodding toward Paula who was still studying the decorations, too immersed to even have noticed her mother fleeing. 

”Er, thanks,” Raquel said, trying to find a way around the woman.

”What’s her name?”

”Paula.”

”Oh, that’s pretty. My own is a little bit older than her, but just as obsessed with Christmas,” she smiled sweetly. ”He played Father Christmas in a school play. Sixth graders - surprisingly good actors. Speaking of which, what grade-”

The other woman walked to her, rolling her eyes. ”Well that was the clumsiest segue I have ever heard in my life. And news flash: grade is not good enough.”

”Shut up, Tokyo. I was doing well here and now you ruined it.”

_Did she just call him Tokyo? As in, the capital of Japan?_

”Doubt it.”

”There is a reason he wanted me to ask, so stay out of it.”

”Don’t you think it’s kind of sexist of him to assume you two immediately hit it off just because you both pushed a kid out of your vagina? As if motherhood defines you. I bet if she was male, he wouldn’t send Denver to ask.”

”That might be true, but that is not the point, is it?”

Raquel’s head was spinning. She didn’t have the faintest idea what was happening, but she could guess it was not leading anywhere good.

”Maybe I should just...” she started, nudging the cart forward, clearing the way for an escape.

”Oh, you are not going anywhere,” said one of them, grabbing a hold of the cart. Raquel was trapped.

”We have overcomplicated things. It’s just a simple question,” the woman called Tokyo said, and then both of them looked at each other and nodded as if having reached an agreement. Their eyes flicked to Raquel.

”Let’s cut the crap. How old is the kid?”


	8. Chapter 8

”Ex- excuse me?” the woman croaked out.

”We just want to know her age and after that, we’ll let you go. It’s as easy as that,” Tokyo said, still holding the cart like her life depended on it. Nairobi resisted the urge to sigh. Sometimes, just sometimes, her companion jumped the gun a little too early. What they were up against was a poor, defenseless single mother, not a GEO tactical officer.

”No!” the woman said, backing away. She looked like a deer in the headlights, and it was no wonder.

_It was such a simple task the Professor had given them. Nairobi couldn't even find the words to explain to him how they had failed it._

”Great job. Now she’s scared," she said in a voice low enough for only Tokyo to heard. "You should have just let me have a little motherly bonding session. Intimidation is not the answer to everything."

"Well, it doesn't look like she's giving us the answer, is it? And the Professor insisted. If you know him at all, you'd realize that he must have a very good reason for wanting this information," she whispered back. 

Nairobi gave her a glare. _Let me handle this._

She smiled apologetically at the woman who seemed to have grown even more agitated at their whispering. ”Sorry about my friend. She is a bit... intense. Not to mention stressed. You see, we have babysitting duty tonight. Our friend has an 8-year old boy and we were wondering what movie we should put on for him. In case your girl was the same age, maybe we could ask your opinion on the matter?”

The woman glanced at something behind them before drawing her mouth into a straight, serious line. "Her age is none of your business.

Nairobi frowned while Tokyo next to her narrowed her eyes.

”Don't you think it's weird that she gave us her name but not her age?" she wondered aloud, not even bothering to keep the woman from hearing her.

Tokyo had the kind of an expression that suggested that she now believed the woman in front of them was a direct adversary to the professor's ineffable plan and ought to be nothing less than waterboarded for answers. It was time to back off and quick.

"Let's stop harassing this poor lady and go back. For the life of me, I cannot understand why he would even want to know. We can just lie and say she is 6 or something."

The last part she tried to whisper, but it seemed that the woman heard it. She let out a tiny, barely audible sigh of relief. 

As if someone had flicked a switch, the realization hit Nairobi with the force of a missile.

But before she could react, the woman had steered to the register. She and Tokyo observed, confused, as she threw some money on the desk, grabbed the hand of her daughter and rocketed out of the store with a mountain of Christmas decorations in her hands.

"Should I go after her?" Tokyo asked.

Nairobi grabbed her shoulder. "No. I think I got it now. Turn around and check what the professor's face is looking like right now. He looks like someone had hit him with a sledgehammer, doesn't he? Confirm my suspicions."

Tokyo did as told.

Then her eyes widened in realization as well.

* * *

She was a bundle of nerves the whole way home. Paula was babbling about her plans of getting the abundance of decorations Raquel had bought in a rush to fit the tree, and it was getting harder to join in in her daughter’s excitement. She was too shaken.

_God, she needed a glass of wine._

When they got home, Paula was determined to spend the whole evening on Project Tree, but after dinner and some play, she went off like a candle as kids her age tended to do after a day full of stimulation.

After carrying her to bed and lovingly tucking her in, Raquel tiptoed to the kitchen. However, the bottle of Prosecco she dug up ended up being empty. She had already finished it by sipping a little of it each evening.

She sighed. The shop had closed hours ago. She would have to just do without.

She tried to watch some TV in hopes it would tire her out and ease her into a blissful slumber where she wouldn’t have to think about the men in her life, but with little success. The blare of the TV ended up only frustrating her, and she turned it off.

The following silence filled her with aching loneliness.

Having to get used to that had to be the worst aspect of getting a divorce. Although, she’d rather be alone the rest of her life than spend another moment with someone like Alberto.

She rose and was just about to try her luck with a novel when there was a knock on the door.

She froze.

This shouldn’t be possible. The only person that knew that she was staying here was the man renting the cottages, but he was currently in the Canaries, and the idea that it was a Jehovah’s Witness or a door-to-door salesman was ludicrous. No one in their right mind would come all the way up here.

There was only one other chance...

She rushed to the mirror, fixing her hair and face before squaring her shoulders and marching to the door, prepared to tell Sergio to go to hell. 

But when she slammed the door open, she saw no man. Instead, she was faced with three women at the door. Her eyes widened.

There were Tokyo and the other woman from the store. They were joined by a third woman with blonde, curly hair and a warm smile on her face. What was even more surprising, they were holding a bottle of wine and four glasses in their hands.

She was just about the pull the door back shut when one of them stopped her by sticking her shoe in the crack.

”Before you do that, let us apologize,” she started. ”We were made to ask that by our friend, a man you might know - Sergio Marquina.”

Raquel nodded tersely. ”I figured.”

”Truly, if we had known what he wanted, we would have left you alone. You must have your reasons not to let him in the know. Trust me, I get that. Anyway, here’s our peace offering.”

The bottle was thrust upon her. 

"Let us introduce ourselves. I'm Ágata, this is Mónica and that is Sile-"

"Tokyo," Tokyo corrected. The other two gave her a look. She merely shrugged.

”I take the wine comes with company?” Raquel asked, eyeing the glasses still in their hands suspiciously. 

”Well... we are all staying with him, and he told us you were staying nearby, and I'm sorry but we could just _not_ not visit you after what happened at the store. It lead us to believe that you know our friend from around...”Six to seven years ago?”

”I’d say 9 to 10 years ago. The girl is clearly older than that.”

”Impossible, he was in prison at the time.”

”Anyway,” Mónica interrupted the other two. ”You can see how we are sizzling with curiosity.”

”We're fucking dying here. We had no idea that he even… God, and with a woman like you! We need to know _everything_.”

”How do I know he did not send you to dig up information from me?” Raquel asked, crossing her arms.

”Yeah, he can be a sneaky bastard like that,” Agata said, glancing at the others. ”But we came of our own accord. He doesn’t know we are here. And we stole the wine from him. If you want proof, look at the label.”

Raquel did. It said 'Nettle juice, good before 19.10.1997'.

”He always marks them like that if he doesn’t want us to drink it. But one night when we were desperate enough to try it, we discovered the truth.”

A small, treacherous smile slipped out of her at the image of Sergio trying to safeguard his beverages from the women. She immediately frowned after realizing how fond the thought had been. _Pull yourself together._

She had no idea whether inviting these three women in was at all a good idea, but then again, a curiosity parallelling theirs was burning inside her. _Who were they to Sergio and why were they staying with him?_

Besides, as loath it was to admit… She really graved adult company.

"All right, fine. I'll tell you _everything_."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter: Raquel tells the truth about Paula :D


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahhhhh sorry for taking so long and not having time to reply to all of your comments! There were tons of questions I would have loved to answer, but I hope this chapter can clear at least some things up. Soon you'll have Sergio's POV too which will explain why Raquel and the gang don't recognize each other.
> 
> And to the person who wished for less Tokyo: I'm sorry :'D

_God, they were nice._

They had been drinking wine and talking leisurely for some hours with the fireplace blazing, careful not to make too much noise so Paula wouldn't wake up. The girls had listened patiently Raquel talk about her relationship with Sergio and the nightmare that was her marriage to Alberto. They'd only become somewhat nervous when they'd discovered Raquel was a cop and had been involved in the investigation of the robbery 8 years ago, but she wasn't too surprised by that. They were friends of Sergio, after all. They must have had something to do with it all.

However, she kept constantly forgetting that they were criminals. The fact that they'd been kinder to her than most of her colleagues in _years_ was starting to fuck with her head.

"I suppose the story ends here," she concluded, after telling about her reunion with Sergio in the woods.

There was a moment of silence that was broken by Ágata's amazed voice. "I cannot believe it. You were the woman that he refuses to talk about. You were the woman that caught him. "

"And he's the man who betrayed me. I guess we are even," said Raquel sullenly, taking a large gulp of wine.

"I cannot believe he screwed a co-" started Tokyo but was silenced by Mónica violently squeezing her arm.

"Wait, what about Paula? Is she your husband's?" Ágata added, trying the change the subject.

"Before I answer that, let me ask you a couple of questions," Raquel said, lowering her glass. It was time to get down to business.

"Well, our lives are pretty boring compared to yours," Mónica chuckled nervously. She'd been the one most cautious after Raquel's profession had been revealed to them, frequently glancing at the door for a potential escape route. Raquel hardly missed these sorts of things.

"How do you know Sergio?" she simply asked.

"We're old friends. We used to work with him."

"Were you aware of his criminal activities?"

They all violently shook their heads. "Not until he got caught, no."

Raquel sighed. She didn't want it to go to this.

She lifted her purse that had been leaning against her armchair into her lap and took out her gun. She gave them a brief flash of it before lowering it inside again, her fingers still wrapped around the grip just in case.

"I trust I don't have to use this. I just wanted to remind you that I'd really appreciate honesty from now on. I know you are his accomplices in some way or another. So my next question is this: should I be worried about whatever you're planning in that cottage of his?"

"We- we are just helping him renovate it," answered Mónica, pale as a ghost. "We're all carpenters, in fact."

"The fuck I am," said Tokyo, shaking her head like that was the most atrocious thing she'd ever heard. "This is ridiculous. She knows very well that we are not his kindhearted carpenter friends. Better come clean now instead of dragging out this dance until we'd all rather have our brains blown out."

"So you are criminals?"

"As crooked as they come, princesa" Tokyo said, dragging a chair underneath her so that she could sit opposite Raquel. The other two women eyed each other, both nervous and dumbfounded. "In fact, we helped him with the robbery you so vividly described to us."

"Give me one good reason not to arrest you all then," Raquel muttered, keeping her hand firmly on the gun. Tokyo only smirked in response.

"I'll give you two. First, you have absolutely no proof. Second: deep down, you _don't_ want to."

Raquel gave an incredulous snort. "You are a girl with some balls, I'll give you that."

Tokyo smiled. "And you're a woman very good at her job. There's no need to pretend you were giving us the benefit of the doubt; you probably knew from the start that we were no good law-abiding citizens just by our association to Sergio. But still, you let us in."

Raquel didn't know what to say to that. She was absolutely right.

"When I look at you, I see someone struggling. You are still not over the betrayal of your lover 8 years ago, and you just escaped a nightmarish marriage. And based on the way you described it, you absolutely hate your job. The very last thing you want to do right now is to arrest us with your daughter sleeping in the next room, contact your colleagues, one of them most likely being your ex-husband, who will all start digging up the painful memories you have about the robbery, forcing you to relive them. That would definitely cut this nice little vacation short."

"Are you really counting on me being too lazy to do anything about you then?"

"Not necessarily. But what I am counting on is that you won't do it because against all odds… you actually like us."

Raquel kept her expression fixed, trying not to let her face betray how close she'd struck.

"There is a reason you only showed us the gun right now. I think you wanted to do it immediately, I saw you reach to your handbag more than once, but in the end, you didn't. It's because you wanted so badly to have someone to talk to, a friend, that for a moment, you just didn't care about our background. We stole some money, so what? We were kind and listened to you. And Sergio organized the robbery. So what? I think deep down, you don't even care about that. I bet, if he had confessed immediately, it wouldn't have changed your feelings for him one bit. The real reason you did what you did was because he lied to you for so long and broke your heart."

"I-" Raquel began, her throat suddenly dry. She was unable to finish that thought.

"And I think those feelings are still there. At the very least, you have faith in him. You _know_ that if he didn't trust us, he wouldn't have told us where you lived. He wouldn't have told us anything about you."

That is when Ágata spoke up with a soft voice. "Raquel, deep down you know that he would never let anything happen to you."

Her grasp of the gun had loosened until finally, she was no longer holding it and it slipped to the bottom of the purse. There was a whirlwind of emotions inside her, most glaring of them being deep pain in her chest because she knew what Tokyo was saying was true. Some moronic, crazy part of her still trusted Sergio. And by default, she also trusted his friends.

She didn't know what it meant and wanted nothing less than to think about it.

Next, Tokyo lowered her voice into a whisper. "So tell us, how old is your daughter?"

"She is 8 years and two months," Raquel answered with no hesitation. A strangled sob followed only a few moments later, but once it was out, the dams shattered. All that she'd been carrying inside for the past few days - no, years - broke loose, and she couldn't but weep at the thoughts of how unfair life had been to her.

She sobbed into her hands, feeling completely alone in the world. But soon, arms wrapped around her.

"You poor dear," Mónica said gently, squeezing her tightly. "Just let it out. You don't have to be strong all the time."

"Jesus, Tokyo, what was that?" asked Ágata in the distance. 

"Don't look at me like that. I have other methods than intimidation, you know."

Their argument eventually faded away, and the two joined Mónica by Raquel's side. They hugged her, squeezed her shoulder or offered a kind word or two. The more they comforted her, the more Raquel seemed to cry because she had just a flashed a gun at them and they were still there for her.

She closed her eyes, trying to ignore the terrifying sense of her world view shifting.

* * *

When she'd calmed down, she finally told them the most difficult part of her tale.

"Alberto had been trying to get a date with me for months before," she began, sitting on the couch with the girls listening attentively around her, either draped over the cushions or perched on the armrest.

When I returned from Palawan, I felt so betrayed and disgusted with myself that the attention he paid to me finally started warming me up. It felt good to be wanted by someone who seemed to be a perfectly harmless man, unlike Sergio. At the beginning of our relationship, Alberto was charming and sweet and made me momentarily forget about my heartbreak. I don't know if I saw our relationship leading too far, but fate had different plans.

Soon after, I discovered that I was pregnant. He immediately stepped up and told me he'd stay with me and take care of the child. I wanted to be honest so I told him that it might not be his. He immediately brushed it off as if it was the most ludicrous thing he'd ever heard. I was too afraid to bring it up again after that because I had seen something in his eyes that moment, something I didn't like. He'd had a jealous streak even then. 

I'll give him credit where credit is due. He was by my side throughout the whole pregnancy and proposed to me when I held Paula in my arms for the first time in the hospital. I didn't say yes only because I felt obligated, though that was a small part of it, I said yes because I actually loved him. I was happy for the first few years of my marriage. Of course, eventually, his true colors started to peek through, but at that point, I was under the illusion that it would be alright if it was only me he hit and abused. But then he threw a plate on the wall when we were having dinner one day, right next to Paula. I packed up my bags the next day."

Mónica rested a hand over her heart, tears in her eyes. "God, I can't even imagine what you have been through."

"So you never told Sergio?" asked Ágata.

Raquel shook her head vigorously. "Eight years ago, the thought of calculating who was the more probable candidate made me ill. So I never did. I had a criminal who lied to me and an ordinary, charming guy to choose from. I went with the latter, if only for the sake of my sanity. Now I have a criminal and a batterer choose from," Raquel continued, snorting humourlessly. She grew quiet and looked at the bottom of her glass.

"Sergio is starting to look a bit more appealing father candidate, isn't he? He only robbed a little money," Tokyo commented.

She sighed. "Even if I wanted him to be the father, I cannot just pick the one who is most appealing to me at the moment. I am way past choosing days now. I feel like… I feel like it is the time to do the math once and for all.

The group exchanged looks. After a moment, one of them produced a pen and a notepad and handed it to her."If you feel like you're ready."

Raquel nodded solemnly and accepted the items.

For the first time in her life, she wrote down two dates and calculated 40 weeks down from Paula's birth. It only took ten minutes. It was bizarre. Eight years, she'd been avoiding doing this and it was over in a flash. It was hard to wrap her head around it.

When she was done, she lowered the pen and stared down at the paper. The others craned their heads to see the result. They looked at the paper together in silence that seemed to stretch until eternity.

"A drink?" Ágata suggested.

Unable to say one word for the storm of feelings currently rocking her, Raquel just nodded vigorously.

And so they drank.


	10. Chapter 10

"You know, there is one thing you still haven't told us," Ágata slurred, pointing at Raquel with a huge grin on her face.

"What would that be?“ Raquel asked languidly. She was feeling so nice and lethargic that the cushions of the couch could have swallowed her whole, and she wouldn't even have minded.

All of them had been getting tipsy and fast from the moment they first corked the wine, even though they'd had just a couple of glasses. The stuff was good, she'd give Sergio that. She for one welcomed the warm buzz of inebriation after all she'd had to process tonight. 

Ágata leaned closer and look at her conspiratorially. "Is he _good_?"

"What do you mean?" Raquel asked, innocent.

"You know very well what she means," Tokyo snorted. 

Raquel let out a giggle. "He is... I don't know how to describe him. It's impossible."

"Surprisingly good? Painfully mediocre? Virgin-level of experience?" helped Tokyo.

"The best I've ever had," she said and covered her mouth with her hands. 

They all gaped at her. 

"Seriously? _Him?_

She nodded, trying to suffocate her giggles with her hands.

"Our pyjama-clad rain man an actual sex god? No way."

Unable to produce a verbal answer, Raquel lifted four fingers up.

"Four times? In a row? Jesus."

"You got properly screwed by him, but at least you got properly _screwed_ by him," Ágata quipped and they all let out barking laughs.

Next, the woman pressed her two index fingers together in front of her. "Tell me when to stop," she said and started bringing them slowly apart.

Raquel stumbled up onto her feet. "Go on."

Tokyo's brow rose higher the further apart Ágata's fingers went. 

"There," Raquel finally said and escaped laughing into the kitchen to pour herself another glass of wine, leaving the girls to let out impressed noises amongst themselves.

But before she could reach her destination, she crashed into a solid, male chest on her way.

Raquel lifted her head slowly up. None other than the subject of their conversation was glaring down at her with dark eyes. Her throat turned dry. 

An embarrassingly long time passed before she realized to move her hand that had remained frozen on his chest after their collision. As if having waited for her to do that, he swept into the living room without giving her a chance to ask what the hell he was doing here.

Ágata was still holding her fingers up and Mónica and Tokyo were nodding and casting approving looks at the measurement. They stopped the second the saw Sergio, paling. Ágata dropped her hands faster than a hot potato. The man gave each of them a hard look.

Raquel realized she probably should have locked the door after letting the girls in. In hindsight, it was only a matter of time before he'd discovered his guests had disappeared and barged in the first place he suspected.

"Uh, how much of that did you hear?" Ágata snorted, suddenly unable to maintain eye contact with him.

"Out."

"Excuse me?" 

"Out," he repeated again with a menacingly low voice.

They grudgingly clambered up on their feet. "There's no reason to get all pissy," Tokyo grumbled.

"Yes, unless you can give me a very good reason for leaving in the middle of the night, stealing the car and a bottle of wine and ending up _here_ of all places, getting drunk and- god, I don't even want to know what you were doing just now. Are you even aware that this woman is a cop?"

"Nothing new there. We already found that out hours ago," Ágata said with a dismissive hand gesture. "And apparently she was the sub-inspector of the case too. Small world, huh?"

Sergio's face turned red. He looked like he was about to explode, slowly lifting his hands to his temples. "You- you knew what she was and you're still-"

"You know, I'm still in the room," Raquel said dryly, her arms crossed. Sergio turned to look at her. 

"Get to the car. Let this be the last time you fraternize with the other side," he said to the girls, his eyes still on Raquel. She didn't waver under his piercing gaze, matching it with one of her own glares. 

"Hey, don't give us that. We haven't done anything wrong, we only had fun for one god-forsaken night since we first got here. Besides… I think there might have been a time when you were quite keen on fraternizing with the other side as well."

Tittering, they passed by Sergio who was now frozen in dismay at the words.

Tokyo and Ágata started tugging on their coats while Mónica came to give Raquel one last hug.

"This was lovely, Raquel. We need to do this again," she said, squeezing her shoulders. Raquel smiled gratefully at her. "Hang in there. Don't let these stupid men give you any more grief."

With that said, she shot a meaningful look at Sergio over her shoulder and walked to the others.

She heard the door open and click shut. The girls had gone to wait in the car as told. Yet, Sergio was still standing in her kitchen, staring at her.

"Any more ways you still think you can express how little you trust me?" Raquel asked. With liquid courage coursing in her veins, it was easier to face him like this.

"I don't know how you got them to open up to you, but trust me, I won't let you ruin this for me."

He didn't specify what _this_ was, but Raquel didn't need him to. She already knew she wanted nothing to do with whatever he was planning.

"You probably won't believe me, but I'll tell you anyway that I have no interest in meddling with your business. I know better than to involve myself ever again, so rest easy."

"How could I, with you so near?" he rasped out.

The hoarseness of his voice was probably unintentional, but still, it sent a shiver up Raquel's spine.

"Not my problem," she murmured, lowering her gaze. Without looking at him, she walked away. It was time to check on Paula. Hopefully, Sergio would get the hint and leave. She didn't like the way it felt to have him here. His presence was like a thick, itchy blanket over her.

Paula was sleeping peacefully in the bed. She was cocooned inside her duvet like a little bear cub in hibernation. Raquel smiled tenderly at her and sat by her bed, brushing a strand off her forehead. 

A shadow was cast over them by someone appearing in the doorway. Raquel cast a quick glance over her shoulder. Sergio was looking at them both with an unrecognizable look in his eyes. She suppressed a sigh. 

_Let's face the music then._

"You want to know how old she is, don't you?" she began, not lifting her eyes off Paula. "That is what you sent your friends to ask, anyway."

"Not anymore," Sergio said, his voice so deep it startled Raquel a little. "I already know."

She blinked up at him, feeling her chest constrict. "You do?"

_How could that be possible?_

"I dug up some information on my own. Your daughter is 8 years old, born in San Rafael hospital in October of 2011. Her father is marked as Alberto Vicuña, your husband of 8 years after your anniversary next Saturday."

Raquel saw red. She was just about to tell Sergio what exactly she thought about him snooping around her personal life, but when she turned her head and saw the look in his eyes, the words died on her tongue.

If she didn't know any better, she'd say he looked almost anguished.

"Congratulations on a kid and a husband. It is a real stroke of luck, to find happiness so soon," he said quietly. 

Before Raquel could say anything, he turned and walked out. Soon, she could hear the front door close behind him.

She was left alone, consumed by a nagging feeling that it was something else entirely he'd meant by the word 'soon' rather than early in life for her.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You have no idea how much I loved reading your long comments from the last chapter! They fill me with so much joy and motivation to keep on writing. I'm sorry I wasn't able to reply to barely any, these past few days have been absolutely hectic. But I promise to get back to answering tomorrow when life finally gets less crazy!

The next morning, Sergio woke up to a snowball smashing against his window.

His eyes fluttered open slowly, his body protesting against wakefulness after the miserable amount of sleep he'd gotten because of his rebellious teammates.

Briefly, he thought it wouldn't be too much of a surprise if the culprit of the snowball attack would be one of them. Based on what he'd witnessed last night, their immaturity knew no bounds.

He grudgingly rose and walked to the window. He looked down. 

Each muscle in his body tensed.

Sergio saw _her_ daughter running across the yard, being chased by Cincinnati while Denver watched over them and rolled more snowballs with Verona, his and Mónica's three-year-old toddler. A lump rose in his throat.

It took a moment to collect himself, but after the initial shock had passed he sprung to action like a rocket let loose. He grabbed his coat and dashed down the stairs as fast he could. Before he could storm outside, however, he was stopped by Nairobi materializing in front of him.

"Someone is in a rush," she commented wryly.

"What is the kid doing here? And where is Raquel?" Sergio asked, his voice trembling with anger.

"Raquel is back at her own cottage, sleeping it off like the rest of the girls. You should see Tokyo, she tried to kick me when I let some light inside the room. Raquel must be suffering from the affliction. Mónica was kind of enough to give her a call and offer her husband as babysitting help so she could rest. Lucky for me, I have Jiménez blood flowing in my veins which means I'll never get hung-"

"They exchanged phone numbers?" Sergio asked incredulously, feeling like tearing his hair out. "I can't believe this. I've got to put a stop to-"

Nairobi grabbed him by the shoulders. "Calm down. What are you going to do, kick the poor girl out? And Cincinnati just made a new friend out of her! Look at how adorable they are."

She gestured out of the kitchen window where they could see Raquel's daughter and Cincinnati engage in some sort of a guerrilla snow battle, taking turns to hide in various places and ambush the other when they least expected it. After getting hit by one of the boy's snowballs in one such attack, Paula crumbled to the ground. Sergio immediately grew concerned, just like Cincinnati. The boy came to check on her, and at that moment it was revealed the girl had only been faking. She leaped up the second he was by her side.

Together they watched as Paula tackled Cincinnati into the ground and started shoving snow under his collar.

Nairobi lifted her brow, a smile forming on her face. "Nice. The girl really knows her warfare."

"I just- I just don't get why Mónica would do this," Sergio said, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Doesn't she get how precarious this all is?"

"It's a play date, not a nefarious plot to bring this whole operation down. Besides, don't you think it is nice to see more of that kid?" 

Sergio turned to look at Nairobi incredulously. "Why would I want that?"

Nairobi shrugged. "Just thought you'd enjoy observing someone so clever for her age." 

"Well… she is Raquel's, after all," Sergio admitted under his breath. Nairobi scrunched up her nose in annoyance.

"You are willing to give her that compliment now, but last night during our ride home you were unable to spout nothing else but how we shouldn't trust her and that she is basically evil incarnate. What is up with that?

"I never said she wasn't intelligent. That was how she was able to betray me."

" _Sure_ , that's why you got caught."

"Same will happen to you if you don't cut contact with her right this instant. You don't know her like I do. Just think about it, why else would she be here if not to ruin all our plans and return home to her husband to have a merry little Christmas together after catching all the bad guys?" Sergio said, the tang of his words bitter in his mouth.

"You really should cut her some slack," Nairobi sighed. "She's been through a lot, you know."

"Like what?"

She pinched her mouth shut. "I promised her not to tell you one bit about her personal life. Maybe you can figure it out yourself with your superhuman brain the next time you see her."

There was scorn in her voice Sergio couldn't quite understand. It seemed like Raquel had already been able to turn half of his team against him. 

"I won't see her again," he said firmly. _How hard could it be to avoid her until Christmas Eve when the plan was set into action, anyway?_

"Actually, you will. She's joining us for dinner tonight," Nairobi said and ran off the room, escaping his fury in advance.

* * *

Naturally, Sergio opted to stay in his room instead of attending dinner with the others. However, that didn't stop the universe from deciding she should walk through the outdoor the very moment he went downstairs to his notes.

He froze at the bottom of the stairs as he was faced with the sight of her and Mónica greeting each other with a hug. Her cheeks were flushed red from the cold, her eyes were crinkled with joy, and there were snowflakes in her golden-brown hair. Sergio felt an inexplicable urge to step closer so he could reach out and brush those off her hair.

He pursed his fingers into a fist. It was frustrating, the hold her beauty still had on his weak body. But his mind would triumph, he now knew better than to make the mistake of allowing himself to be bewitched by her.

Fortunately, what would make resistance easier was his utter and complete lack of feelings for her now. Years in prison thinking about the mistake that had cost him his freedom had made sure of that.

Raquel finally noticed him, her brown eyes flickering to his. Sergio stepped down to face her, feeling a strong urge to somehow express that whatever she'd try tonight wouldn't succeed.

But before he could come to her, Raquel lowered her gaze and brushed past him to the kitchen, her soft hair touching his arm as she did so. Sergio was left petrified in his spot. The contact had lasted less than a second, but he could still feel her hair tickling his bare skin. 

He could no longer remember what he wanted to say to her.

* * *

The rest of the night, Sergio sat upstairs, listening to the sounds coming from the kitchen. The sound of Raquel's tingling laugh roused his skin into goosebumps. 

She had to know exactly what she was doing. Shaking his resolve, torturing him like this - it had to be a part of her plan. 

Eight years ago, he'd made sure that his team had no awareness of Raquel's existence, keeping his own plan regarding her secret from them. They only knew that he was handling the police while they focused on the matters inside the Mint. He hadn't wanted to distract them with anything else. Now he knew that had been a mistake. If he'd told them her name and explained thoroughly that she was doing everything in her power to bring them all down, Raquel wouldn't be having dinner with them tonight like she was an old friend.

Despite putting headphones on, he could still hear Raquel's voice like she was right next to him. He couldn't take it anymore.

He stomped back downstairs, intending to put a stop to this circus, but not yet knowing exactly how. However, he halted by the kitchen door and was unable to go in.

Raquel was sitting at the end of the table, laughing with the others, squeezed on the same chair with her daughter she was holding in her arms. Once again, Sergio was consumed by the same suffocating feeling he'd experienced last night as he'd seen them together.

He tried to drag his eyes away. It was no use, dwelling in these sorts of thoughts. He'd already spent a sleepless night counting down months from her daughter's birthday.

He was no idiot. Of course, he had his suspicions. But no calculations of probabilities mattered. It was her husband's name Raquel put on the paper because it was him whom she wanted as her daughter's father. Not the criminal that had lied to her.

Denver and Mónica were sitting right next to Raquel. Mónica said something to her husband that made him let out his signature laugh and smack a kiss on her temple. Verona in her mother's lap squealed and called out for her papa, demanding a kiss too.

His eyes swept back to Raquel. Briefly, his mind was invaded by a treacherous thought. If he'd treated her better and she'd stayed, and if there had been a child…

But then he thought about the eight years he'd spent in prison while Paula had been growing up. He took support from the wall, trying to force down the painful lump that was swelling in his throat. He couldn't allow himself to entertain that possibility.

Perhaps he should fast-track his plan. The sooner Raquel and her daughter were out of sight, the better. For everyone.


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry for missing a chapter yesterday. I was so tired I could barely move, let alone write. 
> 
> I will try to catch up during the weekend. Thank you for your patience!

Raquel had never felt more at home and scared out of her mind at the same time.

Of course, she'd accepted the dinner invitation. It felt far more appealing to spend another night among adults instead of rewatching Frozen for the 13th time with Paula, even if it meant seeing Sergio. However, what she really hadn't expected was the herd that welcomed her.

Every single one of the abundance of people staying with Sergio was a robber which she realized as they introduced themselves. There were the young and bright-eyed Rio, the constantly cheerful Denver with his odd laugh, his father Moscow who radiated calming energy, and lastly, Helsinki and Oslo. Neither of them spoke much, but the former was great with the kids, presently entertaining Paula and Cincinnati with his bear tattoo. Raquel also discovered that the women she knew as Mónica and Ágata called themselves Stockholm and Nairobi.

All city names.

She should have connected the dots earlier after Tokyo's name first slipped out of Nairobi's mouth. But at that point, it had already been 8 years and Raquel rarely thought back to the investigation for the pain of it. All she learned before she walked out of the case only a day after the robbers had gotten away was that there had been two women and six men involved, and that they'd been using cities as their code names.

In the rational nook of her brain, she knew that having dinner with a bunch of criminals was against all proper police conduit, and she also couldn't help but feel nervous and tense. They all seemed to know who she was but didn't acknowledge her profession in any way. She was half-waiting for them to turn against her the second she reminded them of the fact by an ill-chosen word or a wrong look. However, nothing happened.

Instead, they all appeared to be absolutely delighted by her presence, more so than any of her colleague friends ever. They smiled whenever she joined in on the conversation, laughed and joked with her. It was so touching a lump formed in her throat.

"…And that is why we decided to name our daughter Verona," Mónica smiled, just having finished recounting her and her husband's story. "From Romeo and Juliet, the city of their forbidden love."

Raquel had thought she'd ceased to be surprised after experiencing first-hand the warmth of this outlaw family, but then she discovered that Mónica had been Mónica Gaztambide, one of the hostages and that she'd had fallen for Denver during the heist. Suffice to say, she'd been riveted throughout the entire tale.

"It was her idea, actually," her husband corrected. "I would never have come up with something highbrow like that. I wanted to call her Texas!"

"Thank holy mother of god, you didn't," Nairobi muttered, making the others chuckle. Mónica and Denver just smiled at each other as if they were the only two people in the whole world. _Eight years married and still completely besotted with each other._

Raquel inwardly sighed. She wondered whether they realized how lucky they were. She couldn't imagine herself ever having that again.

Once, she'd loved a man with every particle in her body. But that love had been smothered, never to be recovered. But even if it was possible for her to feel even a quarter of it for someone in the future, she didn't think she'd want to. It felt wrong, hollow.

"Stop eavesdropping and come join us!" Nairobi suddenly called out.

Everyone's eyes turned toward Sergio who was leaning against the doorway, having suddenly appeared out of nothing. Raquel immediately dropped her gaze her food, the grip of the napkin in her hand tightening.

Her heart had began racing. It was ridiculous. She knew it was inevitable he'd eventually join them and had tried to prepare herself for it, but for some reason, her body still reacted as if a nuclear bomb had been detonated in the very spot Sergio stood.

Fighting against every nerve within her to keep from flushing, she looked up again and offered him a polite smile. This was his place and these were his friends, after all.

His eyes swept past her as if she was air.

"We've got ham croquettes," tempted Moscow, lifting the already half-eaten dish up. Amusement flashed in Sergio's eyes.

"Alright, but only so there's less of a chance for you getting a heart attack," he quipped, snatching the plate from his hands. The rest of the team roared out in laughter.

Sergio seated himself as far from her as possible at the other end of the table between Tokyo and Oslo. Still, he didn't look at Raquel, saying something to Tokyo instead that made the woman raise her brow and give a little chuckle. Sergio leaned closer to her, beaming, and said something else that made her this time throw her head back in laughter.

For a reason Raquel couldn't explain, she felt like an icy fist was closing in around her heart.

She uncurled her fingers only to discover the tattered mess that was left of her napkin.

For the next ten minutes she could barely eat, so hyper-focused she was about every single thing Sergio was saying or doing at the opposite end of the table. It was silly. Hadn't him zeroing in on her had been just what she'd been fearing before coming? She should be relieved she wouldn't have to communicate with him.

Raquel decided she should just focus on her meal and not give him a second thought, but that proved to be impossible only a few minutes later. Paula and Cincinnati who had already finished their meals had wandered back to the kitchen, seemingly excited about something they were holding in their hands.

Paula came to her. "Look, mama!" She opened her hands to reveal a tiny, simple origami bird. "Me and Cinci found a book from upstairs. It had instructions!"

Not knowing how to feel about seeing one of those again, Raquel forced a smile. "It's lovely."

"I'm going to show señor Marquina!"

Before Raquel could stop her, she ran up to him.

At that very second, all the conversations died and every single pair of eyes turned to the other end of the table where Paula was standing next to Sergio, offering him the paper bird. Looking flustered, Sergio accepted it with a weak smile.

It was deathly silent in the room. Everyone was still staring at the pair. 

Raquel felt like she was being boiled alive, her stomach somewhere below the floorboards. Luckily, Mónica soon noticed her distress and leaped up to her feet, a glass in her hand.

"A Christmas toast!"

Almost everyone joined in, and Raquel felt a rush of relief pass through her, but it was only temporary. After the toast was over, all the eyes turned toward her this time. What was worse, they were all smiling warmly. Sergio hadn't joined in on the toast and was, instead, talking enthusiastically to Paula about something, folding a creature out of his napkin while the girl beamed with delight.

 _Isn't that adorable?_ everyone's faces seemed to say to her. Meanwhile, Tokyo took a sip of her wine, looking extremely guilty.

So they knew. Every single one of them knew except for Sergio.

_Great. Just great._


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For clarity's sake, I will be calling Moscow by his code name instead of his real name. Of course, he'd normally refer to himself as Agustín, but I don't want to confuse anyone haha.

Moscow didn't like what he was seeing.

As the night progressed, the group expressed more and more avid interest in getting Sergio to interact with their quest Raquel. He probably couldn't blame them. After he'd learned what she and her daughter were to Sergio, he'd been extremely interested in seeing them together as well.

But not like this.

Sergio hardly even looked at her throughout the night and didn't say one word to her all the while Raquel visibly shrank in her seat. Moscow could sense it depressing his fellow diners. The only moment everyone's spirit was lifted was when Sergio briefly showed Paula how to fold a paper elephant, but after noticing Raquel keenly watching him he quickly turned into his somber self again and excused himself from the table.

He went out and didn't return for a good half an hour. The whole time Raquel looked so utterly miserable that Moscow grew upset on her behalf.

His anger properly flared up when Sergio finally returned. He swept over to Nairobi and whispered that he wanted her to wrap up the dinner soon so he could go over the plan one more time without any "hostile parties present". This occurred within clear earshot of about half of the table, including Raquel's. Mortifying silence flooded the room.

Moscow gave him the most disappointing glare he could muster, but the man avoided his eyes. Cincinnati and Paula looked around them, confused about the sullen looks on everyone's faces.

"Alright kids, let's go see if there are any DVDs hidden here," Helsinki finally said, salvaging the scene. He snatched both Paula and Cincinnati by their waists, lifting them effortlessly into the air. The kids squealed with joy and laughed as he carried them out of the room. Raquel looked after him gratefully before rising as well.

"I can help you with the dishes."

Nobody was able to stop her from starting to gather up the empty paper plates, and in the end, she got what she wanted and Mónica let her clean up with her and Denver.

When the couple later emerged out of the kitchen, signifying that Raquel was alone, Moscow saw his chance and slipped in.

She was presently staring inside Sergio's kitchen cabinet where there was only one plate. Luckily the girls had realized to buy a lot of disposable dishes and cutlery before camping at his place. He certainly didn't own much.

"I'm sorry about him," Moscow said gently, causing Raquel to turn to him with a start. "That is no way to treat the mother of your child."

Something abashed flashed in her eyes, but then she relaxed. "It's alright. I wasn't exactly welcome here, was I?"

"I don't care what you did. Call me old-fashioned, but my friend here should have stepped up the second he learned about Paula and your situation with that horrible husband of yours. If he'd been my own son, I would have already made him buy a damn ring."

She smiled a little at that, but that faded soon. "He doesn't know. About neither."

"You're not going to tell him."

It was a statement voiced like a question. Raquel shook her head.

"It's better this way. Paula and I are leaving after Christmas and he has his own… work to focus on. Getting tangled up in something like this is the last thing he needs. He would only hate me for telling him and turning his life upside down _again_. Besides, he has made it pretty clear he wants nothing to do with me."

"He is just being bullheaded. I can promise that if he lets you slip from his fingers now it will haunt him for years to come."

Moscow would know. He'd lived with the same regret for years.

"You're sweet, but it really doesn't bother me that much. "

She glanced at the single plate inside his kitchen cabinet again before letting her eyes sweep across the scarcity inside the kitchen. Most of the few things piled on the counter belonged to Sergio's guests. The same could be said about the other rooms in the cottage. 

"How long has he lived like this?" she asked quietly. "And why here? It is so far from _everything._ "

"The government let him choose the place where he wanted to carry out his probation. This is what he picked. I suppose it is just in his lone-wolf nature, to want to live in a place so remote. And he really doesn't need much to survive by, he's resourceful like that."

"Would he mind me asking how he got out? They sentenced him with decades beyond decades."

"Well, I don't mind telling you. His intellect ended up invaluable to the police, and they made him help him to catch other criminals. In exchange, they reduced his sentence year by year until they just decided to put him here. I guess they thought he'd be more cooperative if they granted him more freedom. They are probably never going to let him go, though. He's too important for them now."

Anger sparked in her eyes. "They can't do that!"

"Oh they can, it's the government. They make their own rules." Moscow shrugged. After seeing her expression turn, he rushed to comfort her. "But hey, everything beats prison."

Raquel looked endlessly sad at that.

"Tell me honestly, was it awful for him?"

There was no point in lying. He nodded.

"He mostly suffered because of his brother. He passed away while Sergio was there. I'm afraid he still blames himself for it. It probably won't surprise you that Berlin went out in his own terms. I cannot find fault in it, he'd already been wasting away for so long. However, Sergio thinks he could have prevented him if he'd been there."

Raquel covered her mouth with her hand. "God, no wonder he despises me."

"You're in no way to blame for it, nor Sergio for that matter. What he cannot understand is that there was no stopping Berlin once he'd set his mind on something. Besides, knowing him, he probably left this world on the lap of a beautiful woman, a drink in his hand."

She gave a mirthless laugh that sounded more like a sob. Moscow stepped forward and took her hand tenderly hand in his. 

"I don't get it," she began weakly. "When he did what he did 8 years ago, I wanted him to suffer so _bad_. But now looking around this ascetic place and listening to you talk about what he's been through… more than anything, I wish I could take all that back, no matter what he did to me or how much money he stole."

"You were only doing your job."

"I know, but god," she shook her head as if trying to snap out of it. "I should hate him. It would be so much easier if I did. Why can't I?"

Moscow thought back to his wife and smiled sadly.

"Sometimes you meet a person so special that you are unable to shake off the hold they have on your soul, no matter how hard you try."

Raquel looked away. "Well, I certainly haven't been able to shake him off. To think that I ran into him here, after all these years… Did he tell you why he chose just this place?"

"No, I don't think he ever did."

"It's funny. My parents took me here when I was Paula's age, telling me it was the only place in Spain that still had magic in the air. Maybe I told that to Sergio, and the name simply stuck to his head."

 _Or maybe he chose the place because it reminded him of you_ , he thought.

"I bet he still holds you dear."

Raquel shook her head vigorously. "No, I strongly doubt so. And that is exactly why I don't want to bother him with my problems. He simply wouldn't care."

"One word and I'll make him understand reason."

This time, the sound she made did resemble a laugh. "No need."

She rose to her tiptoes and kissed his bearded cheek, tears still glimmering in her eyes. "You're a good man, señor-."

"Ramos. You deserve only good things, señora Murillo," he said and really meant it.

It was clear she still loved him, and Moscow's heart ached for her.

* * *

Later, Moscow caught Sergio standing alone in the kitchen, staring out of the window with a hollow gaze. He was looking at the tire trails in snow left from the car that had taken Raquel and her daughter home.

The man was holding Paula's origami crane in his hands.

 _Don't make the same mistakes as I did,_ Moscow prayed and walked away to leave him in peace.


	14. Chapter 14

The car was officially busted.

Thus far, the only problem had been the loose door, but the loose door had turned into an engine that wouldn't turn on, probably because of all the cold the door had let in despite Raquel trying to tie it shut with a contraption she'd devised out of her pantyhose. 

There was no other choice but to call a mechanic that would visit the cottage from anywhere between 3 to 14 days and walk to the store instead of driving to get some groceries for her and Paula.

The ease of the trip down the slope fooled her. It was nothing compared to the agony that was climbing back up with two heavy bags and a wind that seemed to slam stronger and colder on her face every second. She had snot under her nose, her hair gotten tangled in the wind and all the bags made her look like a homeless woman.

It was only natural that just at that moment, she'd hear Sergio's cheerful voice in the distance, soon joined by Tokyo's. Raquel was hardly even surprised. A week had passed since the universe had last managed to screw with her, the time was ripe for another go.

She glanced up. They were walking down the same road, alone, talking animatedly with each other. It must be nice, a romantic stroll like this on a beautiful December morning. Raquel tried her hardest to unbearable weight in her stomach. She wiped her nose and trudged on, keeping her head lowered.

Tokyo soon noticed her. "Hey, inspectora! Where are you going?"

Sergio frowned as he saw her. Raquel tried not to look at him. "Coming home from the store."

"What happened to your car?"

"Out of order. Getting some exercise while I'm waiting for the mechanic," she said, smiling strainedly. She hoped they wouldn't see how much she was struggling with the bags. God, she wished she'd had the sense to take Paula's sled.

Sergio's eyes were laser-focused on her red-flushed knuckles around the handles of the bags, but he thankfully didn't say a word.

"My cottage is not too far from here now. I'll be there in a jiffy," Raquel lied as her response to his gaze.

Sergio nodded."We'll let you get on your way then."

After exchanging other cordialities, Raquel continued to briskly walk onwards, and they passed by her.

Their first civil conversation. Huh. Raquel didn't know whether to feel relieved or uprooted. This was far from her frame of reference.

If they kept this on, maybe she could survive until Christmas.

_But not if she had to see him with Tokyo_ , whispered a voice in her head. She snuffed it out. She shouldn't care - she _didn't_ care.

Their distance had not grown far enough for her not to catch Sergio's next words as their chatter continued.

"She looks tired," he commented.

She didn't know whether she was meant to hear this, but she took it as a mark of continued hostility nevertheless. With anger heating her veins, she improved her pace, marching away with loud stomps. She'd show him who was tired.

A sound of a car began quickly approaching. She halted her protest-like dash and stepped to the side of the road to let the car pass. But it didn't speed past her as she expected.

When the driver caught sight of her, the car slowed down and came to a halt by her side. Raquel quirked her brow in confusion.

The window rolled open, and a haughty-featured man stuck his head out. "Are you señora Murillo?"

"Yes, I am. Are you the mechanic? I didn't expect service quite this soon," she said, pleased. This would be the last store trip like this.

As his response, the man threw the door open and exited the car with a briefcase. "I am no mechanic," he grumbled as if offended, and then handed her a bundle of papers.

"Finally, I found you. You're being sued."

"What?"

"For custody of the child. I'm the attorney of señor Vicuña"

Raquel was so dumbfounded it took a while to choke out her next words. "He- he cannot sue me for custody, I have an emergency protective order!"

"My client is having it revoked. In all politeness señora, We are confident in our ability to disprove the falsified evidence you presented to your attorney."

Raquel gave out a bitter, loud laugh that startled the attorney. "Whatever. As amusing as it would be to have him contradict those photographs, I have to decline. Here's a message to your client: Paula is not yours. Do a paternity test if you don't believe me. _You're not getting her._ "

Raquel turned her back and started marching away. Just at that moment, the bottom of one of the bags tore, spreading its contents on the snow. Raquel swore.

The attorney caught up with her.

"Are you telling me that you have made my client care 8 years for a child that is not even his? Señora, you have an even bigger lawsuit at your hands!"

"Watch me give a crap," she said, opting to abandon the groceries in the snow. She was feeling sick and needed to get out.

"You better act really careful now, señora Murillo. I'm warning you, my client _will_ get the child," the man shouted, jogging after her.

A violent, freezing jolt went through her as the words made her realize what it meant that the attorney was here.

"How- how did you find me?"

"That is confidential, but I can say that your colleague proved helpful this morning."

_Goddamn Angel. He must have traced the call and then been stupid enough to tell her location to the first official that came knocking on his door._

"Does my husband know where I am?"

Based on the blank look on the attorney's face, Alberto didn't know. Yet. It was only a matter of time before the attorney would give him a call and tell him that the suit had been served, and her husband would ask his always so innocent question: _So where did you happen to find her?_

Raquel couldn't help it. She began violently trembling, and not from the cold.

"It would be in your best interest to control yourself, señora," the attorney said, annoyed at the display of emotion on her face.

She couldn't breathe. _Oh god. He's going to find me, he's going to take Paula, he's going to hurt as both._

The other grocery bag slipped from her hand to the ground, and the carton of eggs burst on their feet. Raquel felt her knees about to give up on her.

The attorney cursed a little and was just about to clasp her arm when someone suddenly grabbed him by the collar and wrenched him away from her.

"Who are you and why are you harassing this woman?" Sergio spat out, stepping between her and the man after he'd stumbled a few paces away.

Raquel had never seen him so angry. It was hard to believe it was him at first.

"I- I'm just-"

"He's an attorney," said Tokyo, looking at the papers he'd dropped to the ground. Then she paled. "Alberto sent him."

"Your husband?" Sergio asked, confused. Raquel couldn't answer even if she wanted to. She was still shaking, completely paralyzed by fear.

Tokyo leaped up to her feet. "Professor, we cannot let this man tell him where she is. _We absolutely cannot._ "

Sergio grasped the situation immediately. He nodded, not hesitating for one second.

"Tokyo, help her with the bags and call Mónica and tell her to come immediately with the car. I'm going to have a little chat with this man."

Sergio dragged him out of Raquel's field of vision.

"It'll be alright," Tokyo said, crouched down and scouring through the groceries, searching for something still salvageable. "Professor will take care of it. He always does."

Raquel, still not quite comprehending what had happened inside these last few minutes, didn't say anything. She finally let herself crumble into the ground. Her bones felt as heavy as lead.

Finally, both of the women looked up as they heard a car's engine roar. The attorney left with snow flying from underneath his tires as if in rush for his life.

Sergio walked slowly back towards them. If she didn't know him, she'd be scared by the look in his eyes. Tokyo did look a little nervous at his business face, but Raquel remained calm. It was just him. Nothing would ever make her afraid of him.

He lowered himself on one knee, helping Tokyo to repack the bags. He didn't say anything at first, but then he lifted his brown eyes to hers. "You don't have to worry about him ever again. He will not tell your husband. I made sure of it."

"What the hell did you say to him?" asked Tokyo, still bewildered by the attorney's sudden exit. Sergio just looked at her sharply, silencing her.

"Thank you," Raquel whispered.

Sergio looked away. "Don't mention it."

Soon, Mónica came with the car. Tokyo helped her into it while Sergio stood back, staring into the distance with his eyes glazed over. Raquel watched him, her heart so full of gratitude and tenderness for him she thought it might burst.

_He just did what any decent man would have,_ she tried to remind herself.

But it was so hard, not to love him at this moment.


	15. Chapter 15

Two days Raquel spent pining away in the cottage, thinking about what Sergio had done for her.

She foolishly expected him to come check up on her like Mónica and the other girls did soon after. The realization that the extent of his concern ended at scaring the attorney away was a bitter pill to swallow. He'd done her an enormous favor, but still, she was greedy for just a little bit more; a tiny crumb of something that showed that he regarded her with the same warmth she did him right now.

God help her, she wasn't able to summon even the tiniest amount of ire towards him. It was awful. 

She almost wished he hadn't helped her at all. Despising him had been so comfortingly familiar.

Not wanting to think about how terrifyingly tender her feelings towards him had exactly started to be, she directed her attention elsewhere and finally gathered the courage to call her attorney and discuss what her options were now that Alberto was pursuing custody. Sergio seemed to have gotten rid of Alberto's representative, but there was nothing stopping him from hiring a new one, and she had to prepare.

The call started off with a weird note when her attorney seemed extremely cheerful when she answered the phone. "Señora Murillo! This has certainly been a fortuitous and busy day for both of us, but I'm glad you still found the time to call."

She continued before Raquel could get a word in. "If you want to know how this will affect the case, I only have good news for you-"

"Wait, what are you talking about?“ Raquel finally managed.

Her attorney grew silent on the other end of the line. "You- you don't know?" she finally asked.

"Know what?"

And that was when Raquel learned her husband had been arrested.

* * *

"... Here you can see the police dropping by the culprit's house to collect one of their own. Vicuña's family was not present to witness his apprehension and remains unavailable for comment. The charges of corruption and assaults on innocent civilians have shaken the Spanish public since documents related to Vicuña's wrongdoings first leaked this morning..."

Raquel closed the news clip she was watching when she heard Paula walk into the room. She managed a smile at her little girl, but the second she had wandered off again Raquel's head sank onto the table in mix of dismay and relief.

Alberto, charged with multiple assaults and bribe-taking? Somehow, it was both unbelievable and not surprising at all. Alberto really could get away with a lot, if he played his cards right.

But how could she have a good enough luck for this all to unravel now? 

As her attorney had so kindly put, "he didn't have a snowball's chance of hell" of winning the custody now, especially when the press would get interested in his missing wife and her domestic violence accusations directed towards him. 

It was almost too good to be true. Alberto was now detained, and Paula was completely out of his reach. Police would also be leaving them alone regarding the investigation because of the emergency protective order. She would probably have to deal with some interviews once they got home, but that was a worry for another time. The most important thing was that Paula was safe.

She looked again at the news clip, paused on Alberto's stupefied expression as his colleagues handcuffed him.

 _See you never, bastard,_ she thought.

She scrolled down to the article below the clip. "Unidentified" leaker was what they called the person who had exposed all of his criminal activity throughout the last 7 years. Raquel felt a silly urge to a blow kiss into the air.

_Thank you, stranger._

The only issue now was how to talk to Paula about this. She was bound to find out sooner or later, and it was better to explain everything to her before she returned to school where her classmates had drawn their own conclusions.

But next, she focused on a far more pleasant activity with her. 

It had taken several days for them to dress the Christmas tree because of the piles and piles of decorations Raquel had managed to buy. In the end, the tree looked so much like an overbrimming mayhem of glitter and color with a barbie stuck on top that it was nauseating to most people's aesthetic eye. However, Paula seemed to love it so Raquel did as well. 

It was their own l little tree, after all.

"Do you want to turn on the lights?" she asked, the switch already on her hand. Soon the lights of the tree would flicker on and Christmas would truly commence.

"No! Only when it's dark! Now I want to watch something."

Paula was already running to fetch the Frozen DVD. Raquel sighed. She supposed one more time couldn't hurt.

A moment later, Paula curled against her and Raquel draped a blanket over them both. She turned on the TV with the remote.

But nothing happened. The screen remained dark. She tried again, and again, but still, no image flickered on.

 _Strange_.

She rose to check whether the TV was properly plugged in. It was. Now she was even more confused. 

"Why isn't it working?“ Paula whined.

"I don't know, cariño," Raquel huffed out. "Maybe we just have to do something else instead."

"Can we play outside?"

Raquel looked out of the window. The wind outside looked strong enough to rip trees from their roots, and it was snowing so heavily she could hardly see anything but white. _No. Definitely not._

Maybe it was good there were no distractions. This was as good as time as any for her to discuss Alberto with Paula.

She sat back on the couch and drew her daughter close. "I need to tell you something about your father."

Paula looked at her blankly. "Which one?"

Raquel blinked. "Which one?" she parroted, completely dumbfounded.

"Which father do you mean? Papa or señor Marquina?"

Raquel jerked back as if having received an electric shock. "Who told you señor Marquina is your father?“ she asked, aghast.

"Cinci. When I was playing with him on Saturday."

Raquel gripped the arm of the couch, trying to calm herself. "How would your friend Cincinnati know about adult matters like that?“ 

Paula wrinkled her nose. "Adult matters? My friend Teresa has a birth mom and a stepmom, and that is almost the same. I'm not a baby, I know about this stuff!"

"I never said you were a baby, cariño. I just want to know exactly what Cincinnati said and how he learned it."

Paula straightened her back as if preparing to tell an exciting tale. "So, a couple of days ago Cinci was hiding under the table. He does that when wants to listen to the grown-ups talk about robberies and guns and the police, all that interesting stuff. Then señor Marquina came in with aunt Tokyo. There was a lot of yelling. Señor Marquina was really angry at aunt Nairobi and aunt Mónica because they hadn't told him that papa had been bad to you. He was as red as a tomato. It was scary. He yelled some more, and then aunt Nairobi yelled back that maybe you would have told him yourself if he wasn't such a… and then she called him a name Cinci is not allowed to use. Señor Marquina got really quiet after that and went out and didn't come back for the longest time."

Raquel felt dizzy, and her throat had turned completely dry. Paula continued, unaware of the story was affecting her mother. 

"Cinci crawled back from under the table and asked his mama what they had all been yelling about. She told him that señor Marquina was really my papa and loves you, my mama, very very much and he was only angry because he wants us to be safe. And the reason why aunt Nairobi called him the bad word is because she loves señor Marquina too and wants him to be happy. They were all just caring loudly.

Then señor Marquina walked back in and told that the plan had been set into motion and that we would see results soon. Then there was more yelling and-"

Raquel stopped Paula. "Cariño, are you sure your friend is not exaggerating some of these things?"

The girl pursed her lips. "He heard it all with his own two ears! And I heard it all with my own two ears from him."

She sighed. That was probably the explanation to this. A game of telephone rarely yielded accurate results, especially with children. Cincinnati had probably let his imagination run wild at some parts. Raquel could imagine that Sergio had not been nearly as upset as the boy had described him as. 

It was too incredible, imagining him caring that much.

Paula was worrying with the edge of her shirt, a thoughtful expression on her face. "It's alright if you want to marry señor Marquina, you know."

Her heart convulsed. "What?"

"It'd be nice, if we could stay here. I'd see Cinci all the time, and you'd be happy _again_."

A lump rose into Raquel's throat at the last word. Sometimes, her daughter was too perceptive. Raquel didn't really remember the last time she'd truly felt joy during her marriage to Alberto.

The thought of Sergio making her happy made her nervous in a way she couldn't quite comprehend. In any case, what Paula had suggested was beyond impossible, and she really didn't want to fill her daughter's head with ideas about some sort of a future they would share. 

She dearly hoped the girl hadn't expressed a wish like that in Sergio's presence. That would be mortifying.

Especially now that he knew the truth of her pathetic situation.

"Cariño, me and señor Marquina are not-"

"Brrrrrrr."

That was Paula's answer. She had wrapped her arms around herself and pressed her chin to her chest. Only then Raquel noticed how cool the air in the room had gotten while they had talked.

"Brrrrrrrrr," said the girl again, looking at Raquel with her expression clearly signaling how miserably cold it was.

A slight suspicion started nagging in her head, and it didn't stop until she walked to the light switch and tried flicking it on.

Nothing happened, nor did anything when she tried all the other light switches and electric appliances in the house.

The cottage was completely out of power.


	16. Chapter 16

Ten minutes later, Mónica arrived to take Paula with her.

"But the Christmas tree!" the girl cried, tears near spilling from her eyes as Raquel put a coat over the warm bundle of clothes she already had on. Raquel had wrapped her up in as many warm layers as she could the second she'd discovered the heating had died.

"Don't worry, I'm going to fix it."

"But I want to help."

"It's too cold for you to be here. But you're going to have lots of fun with aunt Mónica and Cinci in the meanwhile. When you come back, I promise the lights of the Christmas tree will be on."

Paula tearfully nodded. 

"Are you sure you don't want to come too?" Mónica asked after Paula had been put into the backseat of her car. She was wearing a concerned frown. "The storm is going to get only stronger from here. If you cannot fix whatever is wrong, we might not be able to get you and you'll freeze."

"I'm sure I'll be fine."

"I could send one of the men to help-"

"As I said, I'll be fine." Raquel attempted a calming smile. Truthfully, she'd rather not accept any further help from the residents of the neighboring cottage. She was still somewhat irked about what they had let Cincinnati tell Paula, but she tried not to let it show.

"If you are sure," Mónica said, not looking sure at all.

After she drove off with Paula, Raquel was left with her own thoughts. She had to get to work and quick if she didn't want every single thing her daughter just told her to start replaying in her head like a bad song. 

It was useless and dangerous to entertain any sort of hopes based on it.

* * *

It took the better part of an hour to find the main electric panel of the cottage and then even longer to jiggle it open with a screwdriver. The whole box was so crusted with rust it was no surprise that fuses were on their last leg. Luckily, Raquel was adept with domestic repairments. Alberto had always been better at breaking things than fixing them.

However, she'd spent so much time getting to this point that her fingers' had grown stiff and clumsy. It was hard to inspect the wiring of the ancient-looking fuses in the dim light with your fingertips aching from the cold. Besides, the box had been put so far up on the wall that she had to be on her tiptoes just to reach it.

As the air inside the cottage got colder and colder, Raquel was starting to reach the conclusion that no fuses had been blown after all. The outage had to result from something else, and the source of it was starting to become more and more evident as she glanced out of the window. The storm outside was roaring like a wild, white beast. She supposed she couldn't get the door open even if she tried.

Raquel was starting to regret not going with Mónica. There was no way anyone would be able to get her now.

Rather than dwelling in these miserable thoughts, she decided to try twice as harder. She went to find a flashlight and some books to stand on. An additional blanket over her shoulders wouldn't harm her either. She planned on meticulously changing every fuse into a new one until at least one of them would stir back into life and she'd get the heating back.

It was a nice dream at least.

Hours later, feeling so cold that it was as if she'd never felt warmth in her life, Raquel still hadn't given up. She shifted her position, but that was when the pile of books she was standing on gave away. She slipped and would have tumbled onto the ground if a pair of strong arms hadn't just then wrapped around her waist.

Breathless, Raquel stilled in the arms of the strange man. Still, there was something terrifyingly familiar about him. His hoarse voice spoke up.

"Why aren't you answering your phone?"

It was Sergio. In any other scenario, she would have gasped and wriggled out of the grip of the man who was too dangerous to let this close, but now she felt too weak to protest or even ask him how he got in. Besides, his body felt so heavenly warm against hers.

"Mónica and the others must have tried calling you hundreds of times. Where were you?"

"I was here trying… to fix… it," she croaked out, her breath dissolving into the air like a cloud of smoke.

"It looks to me you were offing yourself," he said roughly, turning her around so he could look at her. His face twisted as if in pain.

"Jesus fucking Christ Raquel, your lips are almost blue. How careless are you?"

Raquel scrunched up her brow, but that was all she had the energy for besides shivering. In an instant, Sergio swept her in his arms and began carrying her. 

_So this is happening,_ Raquel thought, calmly, hazily accepting the situation. Instinctively, her head lowered on its natural place on his chest as if no time had passed. Sergio let out a ragged breath at that.

He quicked his pace. He was probably not too happy about having to do this, but Raquel's mind was too muddied at the moment to feel any proper shame.

They walked through the kitchen on their way to the living room. On the floor, she could see shards of glass.

_Did he break my window?_

"And you don't even have the fireplace lit," Sergio muttered to himself, setting Raquel down. 

Soon, he found matches somewhere. He threw some blankets on the floor and then settled in front of the fireplace, trying to light it. His fingers were shaking. _Odd_ , Raquel thought drowsily, drawing the nearest blanket on top of her.

Finally, he managed to kindle the beginning of a fire. He beamed at the sight of flames. It was nice, to see him smile.

"It's good that you're shivering," he said, turning to look at her. 

"I beg to differ," she murmured. She felt like even her bones were rattling.

"It means that it is not serious. But we still need to get you warm."

He hesitated for a moment before lowering himself onto the floor with her and drawing her close. He wrapped his arms around her. Only that was needed for her blood to start pumping again and her to return to her senses. It was strange and terrifying, having him so near again. She felt the strong urge to flee, even though there was nowhere to run from this snow-surrounded cottage.

"Do not take this as something it isn't," he muttered. She was about to ask what he was talking about, but then his hand snaked underneath her sweater and his meaning became apparent. She gasped. His fingertips felt like electric currents on her skin.

"You understand what I am trying to do, right?" he asked, sensing her nervousness. His hand hovered over her stomach hotly. "You need the heat of my body to get better."

She nodded.

"Don't fret then." 

He slowly draped her sweater over her head until she was left only in her bra. At least it was black and somewhat nice. The only comfort this humiliating situation would yield. 

Sergio avoided looking at her and focused on taking his own shirt off instead.

She stared at the fine contours of his muscles. He was still in good shape. She tried to will herself to look away, but god, it was hard to think straight in this cold.

Only when he was left wearing his boxers and reached for the belt of Raquel's jeans in turn, she protested weakly.

"You're not getting me out of my pants."

"It is nothing I haven't seen before," he rasped out. Voicing that sentiment aloud made the situation suddenly unbearable. Why, why just Sergio had been sent to check up on her out of all the other men in the cottage? She wouldn't mind them seeing her, but not Sergio. It was agony.

Freezing to death began to look like a more and more appealing option.

She wasn't able to fight him. He slid off her jeans and saw her in the light of the fire. Inwardly, she grimaced. She just knew the bruises Alberto had left on her hips hadn't faded away. Sergio stared, and Raquel felt so vulnerable under his gaze that her frustration started to seep in.

"I could have gotten through the night on my own, you know," she snapped. 

Her body betrayed her immediately after and she started violently trembling again. That was when Sergio stopped studying her and enveloped her in his arms. The heat of his body felt both blissful and torturous.

"No you wouldn't have," he simply answered into her hair. She hated how good his breath felt on her skin. It reminded her of all those long nights in Palawan when he…

Her anger resurfaced.

"How did you even get here? You cannot haven driven here in this storm."

"I walked."

"You walked? Are you crazy?" she asked, inexplicably furious at the thought of Sergio trudging through all that snow and cold. "Why would you do that?"

"Because you were stupid enough to stay in this godforsaken ice cave," Sergio growled in return.

"What is it to you if I freeze to death? It'd be just one less problem for you. I know you cannot stand the fact that I am here so just please, spare the pity-"

He wrenched himself away, startling Raquel. 

"You know what I cannot stand?" he began with a shaking voice. "You and your bullshit assumptions about me. Did you honestly think I'd kick my heels from the sheer joy of knowing that you are here, cold and alone? Do you think I am that heartless?"

Raquel didn't know what to answer to that.

"Did you think it was _pity_ that made me walk through that storm just to see that you were okay? And did you think I'd be physically able to feel anything but utter horror at your bruises? Do you have even the faintest clue what I want to do to your piece of shit husband right now? Did you honestly think I'd get some sort of satisfaction from the knowledge that you suffered in his hands for god-knows-how-many years and that I couldn't do _anything_ about it?"

She was utterly petrified now, her heart standing still as she watched Sergio get even more agitated.

"You told Moscow that I didn't care," he choked out.

Her eyes widened. _How much did he hear?_

"Sergio, I-"

"Yes, I heard. How could you? How could you think that I don't care when I care so much I-"

Not finding the words, he chose to crash his lips against hers instead.


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :D

He kissed her so deeply and passionately that the world spiraled down into the smallest pinpoint of awareness: his mouth on hers, his hands threaded through her hair, his heartbeat against hers. Only when it ended did Raquel realize that she had curled against him, completely lost in the rush of pure, unthinking pleasure.

His eyes fixed on hers, dark with hunger the kiss had awakened in him. But he pulled back, snapping himself out of it.

"I was not supposed to do that," he breathed out. "I swore I wouldn't."

"Why not?"

He drove his fingers through his hair, agitated. "I was supposed to have it under control. I really thought I did. But god, with you so close… I keep slipping to you like a moth to a flame no matter how hard I try."

Raquel smirked teasingly. "A moth to a flame?"

"Don't try to pretend me kissing you is not a very bad idea. I shouldn't be anywhere near you and not only because of our… history. You have been through hell, and you are not even divorced yet. I swear, I did not come here to jump you like this. My intentions were completely innocent. I only wanted to get you warm-"

He was rambling. His nervousness was so endearing Raquel couldn't help but indulge him. "Alright, let's get warm."

She inched closer to him, resting her head on the crook of his neck and her hand on his chest. Her touch made Sergio visibly shiver. She saw his Adam's apple bob, and then he wrapped his arm around her and pulled her close. He buried his nose into her hair and inhaled, then grew still and tranquil. Contentment radiated off him. 

They fit together perfectly, entwined like this. Raquel sighed. It felt absolutely heavenly, being in his arms like this with the fireplace warning them both up.

However, it still wasn't enough. There was an ache in her bones his kiss had roused. It was something ancient, something she hadn't even known was still there until it stirred. It was not an unwelcome surprise. Rather, something so natural and _right_ there was no use fighting it. 

She couldn't resist; she turned her head and pressed a featherlight kiss on his neck. A sharp exhale escaped him.

"Raquel..."

"I just want to tell you something," she whispered against his skin. "About what you said earlier… I care about you just as much. I do."

She felt Sergio's body stiffen. He was so deathly silent it ended up making her a little nervous. _Had she said the wrong thing?_

"Sergio?"

Finally, he answered in a quiet voice. "I thought you despised me."

"What?"

"Well, why wouldn't you? I really did screw you over. Every time I have seen you these past few days, you have barely been able to look me into the eye. I quite naturally thought that-" 

"You think too much," Raquel groaned and yanked him down into another kiss.

This time, there was no quelling his hunger. Having her willing and warm in his arms was enough to rip apart the last vestiges of his control. He grabbed her, kissing her so hard she reeled back. But in an instant, he had her pressed against the blankets on the floor, his mouth hotly over hers.

It was a familiar feeling, this magnetic, explosive force closing in on them like a vice. They couldn't stop what they had set into motion; the fire had already broken loose the moment their lips had touched. It had always been like that with them. It was as natural as breathing.

Raquel began to melt, each of her nerve endings tingling in the wake of his hands roaming all over her body. It was as if he was remapping something he used to know and wanted to ascertain to himself he could still navigate it. He brushed his lips a hint above her collarbone, making her gasp. Pleased with himself, he continued trailing his lips lower until he reached her bra. He released one of her breasts from its confinement and enveloped his mouth around her already achingly taut nipple. Raquel bucked and cried, but he kept her firmly down from her waist, savoring her taste.

A moment later, he released her. He pressed his forehead against hers, breathing hard.

"If you're not ready, you have to stop me right now," he rasped out.

She could feel him straining against her thigh, already hard. Heat swirled low and deep in her belly at the sensation.  
As her answer, she wrapped her legs around him and pressed firmer against him.

Sergio hissed as if in pain. His mouth found hers again, hot, hard and desperate. Her bra was wrenched off, soon followed by her panties that he furiously tugged down her legs. He parted and admired her body for a moment, feeling her wetness with his thumb as Raquel quivered with need. However, desperation overtook him only a heartbeat later and he yanked down his boxers.

She needed him so bad she felt faint. Without waiting for him, she curled her fingers around him and guided him to her entrance without any prelude. She was already more than ready. Sergio's features tightened and he closed his eyes, propping himself up to push into her.

The moment she was inside, Raquel was consumed by a feeling of such rightness that tears nearly sprung into her eyes. She couldn't believe she had gone eight years without this. It felt like she'd been wandering in the desert without a drop of water the entire time, or adrift at the sea with no land in sight. But now he was here, and everything was well again. She wound her arms around him, arching up, taking him as deep as she could. She sobbed out as he filled her completely.

Neither of them was able to last very long. The relief of having him inside her again was making her near the edge just a handful of thrusts in, not helped by his fingertips lingering torturously light on her most sensitive bundle of nerves in just the way she loved. Judging by the increasing frequency of his groans and grunts, along with the sweat gathering on his forehead, he was extremely close as well.

Not soon after, her name spilled thickly from his lips, and he released inside her. Only a moment later she followed him, the press of his thumb on her clit undoing her. Flickers of shooting stars filled her vision. Trembling violently, she clung to him, wanting to ride out the aftershocks together. He'd always been able to make her come so hard she needed a moment to recover afterward. She was glad that hadn't changed.

Sergio snuggled close to her and didn't draw out his softening member immediately. He seemed to feel the same desire to stay connected as long as he could. They'd been apart for too long, after all. Raquel closed her eyes, enjoying the feel of him all around her.

Finally, he did part, but only to shift to a more comfortable position and to drape a blanket over them both. They huddled together underneath it. Raquel could hardly even remember they were stuck inside a cold cottage in the middle of a blizzard, so comfortable and safe she felt. 

"Warm?“ he asked.

"Warm," she confirmed, sighing dreamily. 

They lay together as one warm bundle for a blissful eternity until Sergio moved suddenly and spoke up with an anxious voice. 

"You're on some sort of protection, right? I didn't use a condom just now. I didn't bring any."

Raquel stifled a laugh. "If you had come bearing those, I would have kicked you out into the storm for your presumptuousness. And don't worry. I'm on IUD."

 _Unlike the last time_ , she thought, recalling a night in Palawan where the thought of protection had completely escaped them.

That was probably what she needed to address next, now that they had all the time in the world to talk things through. 

"Listen, Sergio. Since you eavesdropped on my conversation with Moscow and now know everything, I think we should talk about what it means for you. Of course, I don't expect you to suddenly take an active role in Paula's life just because you're her father. In fact, you don't have to do anything you don't feel comfortable with…"

She felt his body stiffen suddenly as if a poker had been rammed down his back. He became so petrified it scared Raquel.

"Sergio-?" she tried.

"Paula is my daughter?" he asked with a quivering voice.


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Better late than never! Busy day today, thank you for your patience.

It was deathly silent.

Raquel couldn't think of a word to say and even if she could, she probably wouldn't have been able to utter it because her tongue had stuck to the floor of her mouth. Sergio was still holding her, but she could feel his heart beat erratically against her.

"I thought… How… I don't understand…," he began, multiple times, but was unable to complete a single sentence. She couldn't bear it. 

"I thought you knew," she exhaled, feeling completely helpless. "You heard my conversation with Moscow-"

"I didn't hear all of it! I just caught the end. I had my suspicions but… Wait, does this mean you have been talking about my own daughter with everyone else except me?"

Now defensive, Raquel crossed her arms, covering her breasts from his gaze. "Let's be honest, you wouldn't have wanted to hear it. I don't recall kids being ever being one of your grand 'plans'."

"It doesn't matter whether I planned for this or not," Sergio snapped, wrenching himself away from her. 

So long the warmth and intimacy she hadn't experienced in the longest time. It was almost staggering how fast the mood had changed. She felt cold and not because of the winter air.

"It still happened; you had my child and that kind of information is life-changing. How could you keep this from me?"

"I only knew for sure this December. It's not as if I kept it from you deliberately all these years. I just… never wanted get a confirmation one way or another."

"But you did make a choice. You decided you'd rather raise her with anyone else than even entertain the notion that she might be mine," he said, sounding wounded. "To all intents and purposes, Vicuña is her father."

"He is _not_ her father," Raquel said in a grave voice. "He never was and never will be."

"But he was. There is a reason you married him, and you undoubtedly used to love him very much. Don't pretend it wasn't an easy choice, him over a criminal like me," he said, deep self-deprecation etched into his features. "And a quick one too," he added bitterly.

He turned his back to her. Violent anguish wrenched at her chest as she saw him pulling away from her, but his words also made the anger flare up inside her. Her next words poured out of their own accord.

"Don't you think there was a reason I got with him so fast after what happened? I needed to forget you, so I could survive. I was completely heartbroken. I don't think I have ever felt that destroyed, even after he hit me for the first time."

It was true, what they said. The ones you loved the most were able to make you suffer like no one else. And what Raquel had felt for Alberto didn't come even close to a quarter of what she'd felt for Sergio.

The words made Sergio halt. He turned to look at her, his eyes full of indescribable pain at the confession. She continued, unwavering.

"I couldn't bear to be with anyone that even remotely resembled you, so I picked him. And when Paula made herself known, I picked him again. Because how could I tell the man I had sent to prison for life that his child was growing inside me? A child who he would never get to even see? I couldn't have done that to you. It would have killed me even more than the regret I felt after turning you in."

Sergio looked so grief-stricken Raquel had to lift herself up on her knees and cup his cheek in an attempt to give him some comfort. He closed his eyes, relishing her touch.

"It still hurts me so much to tell you this because even though you are on probation now, you missed all those years with her," Raquel whispered. "I'm so sorry."

Sergio covered her hand with his own and turned his head to kiss her palm. "I'm sorry too. If I had been honest with you from the start, maybe you hadn't left, and maybe I could have been there when-"

Unbearable longing filled her at once. She shook her head, trying to push the idea out of her mind. Alternative worlds were too painful to think about.

"Please, let's not dwell on that. You cannot change the past, but what you can do is be there for her now."

He frowned.

"If you want," she added, hesitantly. "As I said, I don't expect absolutely anything from you, and it might take a while to digest this news anyway. I just… I just had to offer you that option. After all these years, I cannot deprive you of her."

He was silent for a moment before he finally spoke up with a hoarse voice. "I… I have a daughter."

Sergio looked as if he was only truly comprehending the fact just now. Raquel let out a half sob, half snort. "Yes, you have."

"I am a father."

"Indeed," she replied, fighting a smile.

"I don't know a first thing about being a father," he rasped out, his voice now full of dread.

"You'd be a wonderful father. I just know it." She beamed, trying to goad a smile out of him as well. But his mouth was still drawn into one sorrowful line.

"But how…" he began, and Raquel was able to read his thoughts.

"I could bring her here at regular intervals during school vacations, maybe some weekends. We'd spend as much time here as possible so you could get to know her."

Sergio knotted his brow at that but didn't voice a word of protest. He swallowed. 

He looked extremely conflicted about something, and Raquel had a guess what it could be about. There was a clear question hanging in the air, after all.

What about them? What were they to each other now other than parents to the child they had conceived together?

They had made love and admitted to still caring about each other. What was the next step?

No longer being wrapped up in each other was bringing back the chills. Raquel hugged herself. Sergio immediately noticed her discomfort and pulled her close. In seconds, she was submerged in all the warmth of the world again.

"It is late. How about we talk more in the morning?" he whispered, caressing her hair.

Raquel nodded. After this conversation, she couldn't bear another round about the just as difficult subject of what they mean to each other.

She couldn't have been more grateful when Sergio then scooped her up and carried her to the bed where they spent the night, quite innocently sleeping in each others' arms to chase off the cold.

* * *

In the morning as Sergio woke, he became aware of two things. Firstly, the heating had come back on and he almost felt too hot with Raquel entwined with him. Secondly, there was a third person in the room. 

His eyes snapped open, and the culprit burst into a fit of giggles. The laughter belonged to a girl who ran out of the room as soon as he was able to recognize her as Paula. His own little daughter.

"I found señor Marquina. He was in the bed with mama," the girl announced to someone in the next room.

"She was?" answered the voice belonging to Mónica. Sergio groaned. _Of course, it had to be just her and now._

He untangled himself from Raquel. As loath it was to part from her, hiding away in the room in embarrassment would only make matters worse.

He threw one of her morning robes around him and marched into the kitchen to confront their visitor.

"There you are. We were worried about where you disappeared, you know," Mónica said warmly as he arrived, refraining from making a comment about his appearance. The robe barely even covered his calves, and he was painfully aware of the fact. He could just sense her sizzling from the urge to say something but waiting for Paula to leave the room first.

"I'm going to wake up mama," she said, running away again. Sergio looked after her, yearning suddenly seizing his heart.

"Somehow, I just knew you would be found here," Mónica finally said. She smiled teasingly at him as if to say _what did I tell you_ , but at the same time, there was sorrow in her gaze. 

"Oh Sergio, what have you done?" She then sighed.

"I have everything under control," he said, wrapping the sash of the robe tighter around him.

"No, you haven't. What about the plan?"

Sergio shook his head vigorously. "This doesn't affect the plan in any way. As I said, everything's under control." 

He then walked out of the room, if only to avoid looking her into the eye.

"For the love of God, don't break her heart again," she called out weakly after him.

He pretended not to hear.


	19. Chapter 19

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Two chapters today! It worked out kinda perfectly because the scene I wrote was so long it had to be divided anyway. And now you don't have to suffer about Sergio's idiocy in the first part for too long haha.

Paula was unsuccessful in waking up her mother. When Mónica went to check up on them some time later, she saw that the girl had curled up next to Raquel and had fallen asleep as well. It was a precious sight.

In the meanwhile, Sergio had already dressed and was tugging on his coat.

"Let's go," he urged.

Mónica furrowed her brow. "Aren't you at least going to say goodbye?"

"They are sleeping. I don't want to disturb their peace," he gruffed out.

As Sergio walked out of the door to the snowy landscape, his shoulders hunched, Mónica got a feeling it was not their sleep he was referring to.

* * *

Sergio was in hell.

Everything around him seemed to remind him of Raquel and Paula. There were the drawings the girl had left on the table, a batch of homemade gingerbread cookies Raquel had given them one day currently being devoured by Rio, the book she'd left dog-eared on the couch and finally, his female teammates' incapability to shut up about her.

Just now they had been clearly talking about her because they fell silent the second he entered the room. What made him even more confident in his hypothesis was the cool looks they shot him immediately afterwards.  
  
Sergio made a conscious decision not to indulge them and went about his business. But Tokyo couldn't resist and piped up.

"We invited Raquel and Paula to come ice-skating with us tomorrow. Just wanted to tell you, you know, in case you actually wanted to spend time with your family."

He tensed. Just the thought of seeing her again after the night they shared filled him with anguish.

"That's probably not a good idea."

Nairobi brought her thumb and forefinger together. "I am _this_ close to kicking your ass right now. Please tell me you honestly didn't just sleep with the mother of your child who, by the way, is probably going through the roughest time in her life, only to ditch her a day later?"

Making love to her had been a mistake. Sergio could see that now. At the moment, he'd been consumed with yearning and hope and ardor, and he would've rather died than not taken her in his arms. But he shouldn't have as he also shouldn't have confessed how his every waking thought since she got here concerned her and her only. It would have been kinder to her to never reveal his profound regard for her. Now she had to be growing expectations in her heart he couldn't meet.

God, he wanted to meet them. He had no words for how much he wished he could have a family with her. However, the universe had never been fair and he'd be a fool to think it would just give her to him. He'd made too many mistakes.

"I would have been forced to abandon them anyway by Christmas Eve when we set off," he said in a low voice. "It's better this way." 

" _This might sound like a crazy idea,_ but maybe you could include them in the plan?"

"Raquel would never say yes."

Nairobi shrugged. "It doesn't hurt to try. Mónica here is the prime example of that."

She was wrong on two fronts. Raquel was not like Mónica because Denver hadn't broken her heart before, and Raquel's _no_ would hurt him more than possibly anything in his life. 

And he knew it would be a no. No sane woman would leave everything behind twice for him, especially knowing what he was planning on doing.

* * *

There was a small, artificial lake on the mountains that was frozen solid always this time of the year. That was where Mónica was planning on driving this morning, the trunk of the car packed full of skates and other gear for all the kids and adults who felt like giving the ice a try. Which seemed to be everyone but Sergio.

He stayed home as the others left, trying not to think of Raquel and Paula. He succeeded in that for a little while as he immersed himself in the final preparations, but he was quickly brought back by the sight of Cincinnati's little skates hanging on the wall of the guest room.

They had forgotten to take the boy's skates with them.

Sergio took them and hopped into his car, cursing and grunting the whole drive there. His intention was to shove the skates to the nearest member of his team he encountered and get out as fast as possible. 

But as always, his weakness was the cause of his downfall. 

When he arrived at the shelter by the lake, the boy's cheeks were tear-streaked with disappointment and Denver was doing his best to comfort him. After Sergio had produced the skates for them, Denver hugged him so hard all the air left his lungs. 

The good deed was done and he knew it was time to leave. Yet, he succumbed to the temptation to catch a glimpse of Raquel.

She was on the ice with her daughter, and yes, she definitely hadn't skated a day in her life. She spent more time toppling down than moving forward. Sergio couldn't help but smile.

Then Nairobi, the devil she was, noticed him and called out his name so loudly even people on the other side of the border must have heard her. Of course, Raquel turned to look at him.

God, she was beautiful. With her cheeks painted red by the cold and a surprised smile on her face, she looked lovelier than an angel.

So stunned by the fact that she was happy to see him, Sergio stumbled onto the ice without any conscious thought.

Raquel clumsily skated toward him, and he captured her in his arms before she would crash into him and take them both down. For a moment, they just stared at each other.

"Hi," she said, breathless.

"Hi," he replied, warmth filling him up like an abandoned well.

In just a fraction of a second, he forgot all the ways he'd rationalized to himself why he should never see her again.


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm guessing that Spaniards don't generally know anything about ice-skating so Raquel and the others are probably accurately portrayed here haha. If you are in the same position and have no idea what swizzles are: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r8VG-3tFBho (It's very easy and fun which is why Paula is being just taught just this move. Even I can do it and I suck at skating lol)

Somehow, he ended up with skates in his feet and demonstrating to the others the very basics of skating. After the last few years stuck in this place, he'd learned to stay up on his feet on ice which was all the skill and experience the others needed to make him their teacher.

However, as much as his teammates were interested in his instruction, they were more keen on leaving him alone with Raquel and Paula. In the end, he was alone with the two. Paula was insisting on him teaching her how to do swizzles, and he'd never been more nervous in his life. It was _his_ daughter, and she was staring at him expectantly. 

_What was he supposed to do? What if she hated him?_

"It's going to be alright," Raquel whispered to him and squeezed his shoulder encouragingly.

Sergio awkwardly cleared his throat. "Alright, let me show you."

He grabbed Paula's hand and carefully led her away. Raquel stayed behind to watch. Her gentle smile gave him some comfort.

"Okay, glide. Now put your heels together. Slide them apart. Make your toes meet. Yes, just like that!"

He was skating backwards, holding Paula's hands as she hesitantly did the motions. She started grinning more and more as she got the hang of it.

"Can I let you go? Try for yourself?" he asked.

Paula nodded vigorously. He released her and she proceeded to do perfect little swizzles, the blades of her skates leaving hourglass shapes on the ice.

"I can do it," she laughed and smiled in a precious, cocky little way as if she'd always known how to do it and was just indulging Sergio out of kindness. It was hard not to love her.

Too confident in her newfound ability, Paula attempted to do the same while lifting her other foot off the ground. Sergio grabbed her hands again before an accident could occur.

"Hey, hotshot. Let's get you back to your mother before she gets nervous at all these daring moves."

Paula just grinned and let Sergio tow her away.

After a few moments of silence, he gulped, suddenly far too aware of the fact that the poor little girl had no idea what he was to her. He wanted to treat her like an adult and be respectful enough not to hide his identity from her, but how was he supposed to address this? More than ever, he wished there was a manual for talking to 8-year old newfound daughters.

"Paulita, there's actually something I wanted to talk to you about," he began tentatively.

"You're my father," she simply answered.

"Oh."

Sergio really hadn't expected that. Now he had even less of an idea what to say.

"Is that- is that okay?" he finally managed.

"Yeah. You're cool."

That was all the approval he needed, and he suppressed a sigh of relief.

The girl was silent for a moment before continuing. "Aunt Nairobi says that you love mama very much, but you're a big idiot. Mama says that you are old friends and that you're the smartest man she knows. Which is true?"

"Let's help your mama with the swizzles too," Sergio hurried to say and picked up the pace.

When they were just 10 feet away, Sergio let go of Paula and let her skate to her mother on her own. Raquel smiled and clapped her hands in delight. When Sergio reached her in turn, Raquel grabbed him by the arm and planted a smacking kiss on his cheek. 

"How are you so amazing?" she murmured as they watched Paula skate to Cinci to show off her new skills.

"With the skates?" he joked awkwardly. "Well, natural aptitude and…"

"She already adores you. I could see."

Sergio felt his heart shrink. He really hoped the girl didn't like him too much. The last thing he wanted was to hurt her.

Raquel soon put a stop to this train of thought by wrapping her arms around him.

"Maybe you could teach me too," she said sweetly, looking up at him. Her flirtatious tone made his heartbeat pick up. That voice he hadn't heard in _years_.

Better not get too excited. He gave her a weak smile. "If I'm going to teach you anything, it would be how to do basic strokes. You're quivering like a leaf on those skates."

"Hey! I'm a warmblooded Spaniard. You cannot expect me to be a pro at this right off the bat."

"No, but what I expect is you not falling on your ass every two seconds."

Raquel feigned offense and scrunched up her face in an adorable manner. Sergio wanted to kiss her. He didn't.

"Fine. I'll just hold your hand and I'll go where you go."

She did, and something poured into Sergio's veins, something warm and intoxicating, something that made him feel invisible. It was still hard to believe Raquel was looking at her like this, touching her like this after all these years, and the fact that she was filled him with rare glee. He wanted to squeeze her in his arms and spin her around and tell her exactly how deeply he felt about her and never let go.

Yet again, he didn't.

Her expression grew more troubled. It was clear she wanted to talk about something serious.

"You know, when you left us so suddenly I was a little afraid you hadn't handled the news well. Or maybe that you came to second thoughts about… us."

"There is an us?" Sergio asked softly, unable to stop himself.

"Would you want there to be?"

That was a dangerous question. He knew what he _should_ answer to it in order to protect her feelings and his own, but he couldn't will himself to utter the word.

Instead, he darted the question back at her. "What do you want?"

"I asked you first."

Raquel bit her lip, and his eyes instinctively landed there. He gazed down at her mouth, and it was probably an answer enough for her which was bad, and he should withdraw. But he cupped her cheek instead and lifted his eyes to meet hers. 

"Raquel, I…"

Just then, they were ambushed. Paula and Cincinnati appeared out of nowhere, shrieking and dashing to them with their arms extended. Ready to attack.

"Run," Raquel chuckled and Sergio started skating away, still holding her hand. He kept just a fast enough space to give the two kids a chase, but not to make it unfair for them.

Their daring escape ended when they were met with a snowbank in front of them. Raquel gave a little yelp. It was too late to slow down or slam on the brakes now so Sergio captured her in his arms and dove with her into the snow. 

For a moment, Sergio couldn't see anything but white. He could only feel Raquel on top of him, laughing. Both of them were completely powdered with snow. She tried to wipe some of it off his glasses but was bellowing too hard to do a good job with it. Even through his wet and blurry lenses, Sergio could see she had snowflakes in her lashes and her lips and she looked so breathtakingly beautiful he was overtaken.

He kissed her.

Paula and Cincinnati circled around them with their skates, giggling and muttering _ewwww_ at regular intervals. Sergio nor Raquel particularly cared. They just kissed and laughed and kissed some more, and he felt so happy he could die.

For the first time in 7 years, he considered staying in his cottage and abandoning his carefully crafted plan of revenge just to have this again. If only a few times a year.


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is actually the perfect day to post this chapter because I believe it is the 22nd of December they draw out the winning numbers for El Gordo in Spain :D

From that moment on, Raquel spent every day together with Sergio.

He was lovely to her, inviting her to spend time with the others at his place, coming to buy groceries with her and helping her with the cooking and cleaning in her own cottage. But most importantly, he was an absolutely wonderful father to Paula.

Presently, Raquel was watching them build a snowman together through the window. Paula was on her tiptoes, trying to shove a twig into the middle of their creation's face. Sergio wound his arms around her and lifted her up so she could put the nose in its place. 

She was so touched by the sight that she had to curl her fingers around the fabric of the curtains. She'd quite possibly never been this besotted with him. Not even in Palawan, because this was the real _him_ and she knew it for certain this time.

But how could it be? How could she feel so much and so strongly for a man so soon after Alberto?

Her hand pursed into a fist around the fabric. _Unless it never left._

It was a terrifying thought, having been in love with a criminal for eight long years without even realizing it. But how else could she explain all those sleepless nights where she couldn't wipe Sergio's touch from her memory or those fleeting moments she'd studied her daughter for any familiar features? 

And it had been so easy to admit she cared for him and let him hold her again…

Now Sergio was running his fingers through his hair, trying to shake off the snow. He and Paula were coming back inside. Warmth blossomed in her body, and she wondered whether he would kiss her once he walked through the door.

It was unlikely.

He hadn't kissed her since they tumbled onto the snow together. For some reason, he'd been distant and careful as if holding her too close, too avidly would make her fade away. Most he did was to hug her and sometimes grasp her hand when it was invitingly within his reach. But he always let go soon. Too soon.

Suffice it to say, they hadn't made love since the storm. It was starting to frustrate her, though she'd never admit to anyone but herself. He'd ignited a spark in her that she couldn't snuff out, especially as long he kept so near.

Soon she would have to take matters into her own hands.

"Professor, Paulita!" Denver called out as he heard them come in. "The Christmas Lottery is starting, come to the living room!"

"Please don't tell me you weren't stupid enough to buy a ticket," Mónica answered from the kitchen. "For god's sake, you are already a millionaire."

"No, I'm not _that_ stupid. I only wrote what numbers I would have picked on a piece of paper. And now we'll see if I would have been lucky."

"You're ridiculous."

It's the spirit of El Gordo! There's no Christmas without it. You get me, Cinci, papa?"

Moscow let out an amused, rumbling laugh. Paula ran off from Sergio, and Raquel craned her head to see she'd joined Cinci and climbed into the armchair where Denver was sitting.

"Paulita gets it!" Denver cried in delight and scooped both the kids in his arms. "Now, fingers crossed for riches."  
  
Mónica let out a loud but fond sight.

It was a lovely sight. Denver, Paula, and Cincinnati completely enthralled by the Christmas lottery, Moscow observing the bird feeder he'd put up the previous day with a cup of hot cocoa in his hands, Rio completely covered with thick blankets and still asleep on the couch, Mónica baking them all Christmas treats, Helsinki nearby entertaining Verona with a picture book, Oslo putting up some Christmas decorations, and finally, Nairobi and Tokyo sitting in the stairway, stealthily enjoying a bowl of gingerbread dough they had stolen from Mónica.

Raquel smiled. They really were the best kind of family. She was so glad she'd found them.

As she watched them, Sergio stepped behind her.

"What are you thinking about?" he whispered into her ear.

"Just how nice this all is," she sighed. 

Sergio rested his hand on her waist, and she hoped he would wrap his arms around her and pull her close. That was probably what he wished to do as well, but Raquel could sense his hesitation.

For some reason, he kept glancing up and then unsurely at her again. She couldn't make sense of it.

"Just man up and do it," hollered Tokyo from the stairway. "This is agonizing to watch."

Only then, Raquel realized to look up herself. There was a mistletoe hanging over them. Her heart leaped. _Oh_.

Sergio shot the women a glare and pulled Raquel out of the doorway, away from the mistletoe. She supposed that was that then.

When they'd found a quiet corner to themselves, Sergio spoke up.

"I'm not going to let some plant or those girls tell me if I should kiss you."

Raquel was a little annoyed. "Well, it is just a sweet tradition, you don't have to-"

The rest of her words stuttered to a halt when he cupped her cheek and pressed his lips to hers. 

Raquel's concerns melted off so fast it was hard to imagine they had been there in the first place. His lips were soft and gentle. His kiss was so affirming she was reduced to pleasant flutter in her bones and warmth in her chest. 

Finally, he broke apart and gasped out his response. "I prefer to decide for myself."

Her heart, overbrimming with fondness for him, was roaring for more. She was just about to pull him into another kiss but was interrupted by Rio who had wandered into the room. He looked as if he'd only just woken up and blinked dazedly at everything in front of him.

"Upstairs?" Raquel suggested.

Sergio nodded, his pupils now a little bit darker.

She took his hand and giddily skittered to the stairway with him. Thankfully, it had just been vacated by Tokyo and Nairobi. It would have made her flustered to walk past them with Sergio.

Not that she minded what they thought about them. It was not as if they were going to do it with all these people in the house. She only wanted to kiss some more with him in the privacy of his room. And if Sergio wanted to have a feel underneath her sweater… she wouldn't be stopping him, but that was the furthest it would go.

God, she felt like a teenager.

However, when she stepped inside his room, she was consumed by a wholly different feeling. This place was even more barren than the rest of the house. He only had a bed, a table and a couple of books piled on top of it. That was it. It was heartbreaking.

Thinking about all the time he'd had to spend here, alone, wrenched at her soul. Overcome with sorrow, Raquel turned to him and embraced him so tightly he wrinkled his forehead, concerned.

The words were out of her mouth before she could stop them.

"I love you."

Sergio's eyes widened. He parted his lips and then closed them again, at loss for words. She couldn't blame him. If he'd uttered the same words to her a few minutes ago, she would have been just as stupefied.

But seeing his room, witnessing again how lonely he'd been made her realize she didn't want to waste any more time. She loved him. There was no use denying it, and he needed to know now. 

"I just needed to tell you because it has been so long since I last said it, and I cannot bear the thought of it being any longer. So in case you feel the same, I…"

Sergio grabbed her by the shoulders, stilling her. His face was deadly grave.

"Raquel, I would burn the world down for you and Paula."

Somehow that made her feel even more than a simple "I love you too" back would have. She met him halfway as he surged forward to kiss her. They clung to each other, starved, kissing each other so desperately it was as if they needed to make up for all those years they had lost in this single moment.

They started tugging at their clothes, and soon it was clear that this would not stop at a simple makeout session. She had no intention to change the course. If they just kept quiet, they'd get away with it.

"PROFESSOR!" somebody roared from downstairs. "Rio stumbled over the cord and the TV got unplugged. No one here knows how to use the remote. HELP US!"

Sergio parted from her, breathing hard. "Can't this wait?" he yelled back.

"WE ARE ABOUT TO MISS THE JACKPOT!" Denver shouted. "COME QUICK BEFORE THE KIDS START TO CRY!"

Sergio pressed his forehead against hers, sighing deeply. Raquel smiled.

"Just a moment," he whispered.

"I'll be just here," she promised.

Sergio then rushed out of the door like his life depended on it, and Raquel was left alone in his room, still smiling, absent-mindedly touching her lips.

She supposed it was official now; she was his and he was hers, and everything was alright in the world again. She couldn't believe how fast she'd gone from perfect misery to perfect happiness during this one month. It was almost too good to be true.

She plopped down on the bed to wait for him. When she set her foot down on the floor, she felt a piece of paper shift underneath it. She bent down to pick it up, only to unleash a heap of papers to flow down onto the floor. She seemed to have slid out the paper at the very bottom of the pile that had been hidden under the bed.

She quickly crouched down to pick them all up before Sergio would return and see she'd already made a mess.

That was until she came across a paper with her own name on it. She knotted her brow. 

Soon, she'd gotten stuck reading it.

* * *

When Sergio returned only a few minutes later, he was met with the sight of Raquel on the floor, quietly sobbing.

He immediately rushed down to her, grabbing her arm. "Raquel, what is the matter?"

But then Raquel turned her head, and he saw the paper in her hands and the tears of rage in her eyes.

And he understood.

It was over.


	22. Chapter 22

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One thing to note before you read this chapter:
> 
> Raquel is still not completely free of her police mindset. I hope you will forgive her for now. And forgive Sergio too, he's being an idiot in the special El Profesor way. (God, I hate writing painful stuff like this...)

Raquel was still staring at the paper through her tear-blurred vision.

_Extraction on the 22nd or 23rd. Raquel Murillo and her daughter are to be taken straight to Madrid with no stops or delays. Extra care will have to be taken to keep her name from being connected to the implementation of 'Christmas present' so her folder will be amongst the first to leak. She and daughter are to be kept safe during the ensuing chaos. You will not give in to her demands to contact or see me. The cottage in my possession will be vacated after the 24th which you will tell her and keep her from traveling there._

_After she'd made recovery, her mortgage will be paid in full and a sum of exactly 50,000 euros will be gifted to her for the purposes of her and her daughter's upkeep. Paula Vicuña will receive 10,000 euros each year until she turns 18 after which she'll be granted a lump sum of 100,000 euros. Her tuition at a university of her choosing will also be paid in full. In case Raquel Murillo ever remarries, she'll receive additional 25,000 euros…_

The last sentence made her feel like tearing the document in pieces.

"What are these? Instructions to your henchmen?" she asked with a shaking voice.

"I have employed men to ensure your wellbeing after I'm gone, yes," Sergio answered calmly. He seemed to have accepted his fate, his face cementing into a mask that betrayed no emotion. She hated it.

"So you were going to leave us - no, have us whisked away just before Christmas and then shower us in money as if it'll make up for it? What made you think I'd ever accept that? And with stolen money, too!"

Sergio's expression hardened. "I bought you and Paula mantecados only yesterday. That was with 'stolen' money too. Why does it bother you now?"

"I-"

"It's alright. You don't have to explain to me what constitutes right and wrong in your mind. It is quite enough for me to know what I value and believe in. That is, taking care of you and my daughter."

Raquel shook her head vigorously. "Don't twist this into some noble and honorable thing." She furiously smashed her finger on the paper. "According to this, you're _leaving_ us."

"Only because I cannot take you with me."

"Where exactly you are going so we cannot follow?"

"I'm crossing the border to France in two days with my team. After that, I'll leave Europe. If you came with me, you'd be fugitives too. You'd have to leave everything behind. And correct me if I'm wrong, but you aren't willing to do that. Even after what we've had during these last few weeks."

There was nothing Raquel could think of saying to that. This was all so sudden, and her mind was a whirlwind. _This whole time, he'd been planning on escaping?_

"That's what I thought," he said with a colorless voice and looked away. Raquel wouldn't have it, her anger reigniting.

"Excuse me if I'm not jumping up and down on from glee a few minutes after discovering your escape plan from a cruddy piece of paper you were never even going to share with me. And excuse me if I have my doubts at this 'Christmas present' as well. What does it even mean that my folder will be amongst the first to lea'?"

Sergio sighed. "I'm truly sorry, but the plan doesn't work if I leave out even a single officer. You were always going to be included."

"Stop apologizing and start explaining."

"When I leave, I will leak all the information I have gotten access to over the years in the service of the government. That includes every single crime, offense and petty misdeed the people in upper positions of Spain's judicial system have ever committed. I'm exposing the rotten core. It is my Christmas gift to the public."

Raquel stared at him, bewildered. Then it finally struck her. There had already been one leak, and in this new light, it was not hard to conceive its source.

There was a tightness in her throat the next time she spoke. "You already exposed your first police officer a while ago, didn't you?"

Sergio nodded. "It was not a part of my initial plan, but I don't feel an ounce of regret about taking a headstart when it came to _him_."

Raquel felt faint, and she had to take support from the wall. "You sent my husband to jail."

"That is where he belongs. And he will not be the first to go there after everything has come out."

"You have dirt on every officer in the upper ranks?" Raquel asked, incredulous. "These people are my friends!"

"And yet, they have all done something, no matter how big or small. I'm only doing Spain a favor by airing out the laundry."

"I want to see my folder," she choked out. The lump in her throat was only growing bigger and pricklier.

Sergio drew his mouth into a tight, thin line. "I'm afraid I cannot let you."

"Why not? You have already told me about your plan, how could you possibly make this worse by telling me what I'm accused of?"

"You're just a cog in their machine, Raquel. It doesn't matter what you did. I'm holding every one of you accountable. It is the justice my father deserved, it is the justice my brother would have deserved."

"Your brother, Andrés?"

Saying his name aloud made Sergio's face twist in sorrow.

He shuddered out his next words. "Somehow, they found out that he'd been living with me in Palawan. I must have made a mistake, let it slip in the wrong company or perhaps they deduced it on their own. Years later, they managed to track him there. Andrés was in bad shape and tired. He knew they were coming but refused to be taken to prison so he…"

Sergio looked away, unable to finish his sentence.

"You don't have to tell me," Raquel said quietly.

"In any case, it was my fault," he continued in a hoarse voice. "And this is how I can right my wrongs. That's what Andrés would have wanted."

"But he wasn't killed by the police. Isn't that just what _you_ want?"

Sergio paused. His face was hard as stone.

She felt wetness on her lashes the next time she spoke. "I get wanting to get back to the people who used you, and I get wanting to put away monsters like Alberto. But do you need to exact your revenge over people who have only done one mistake in their lives?"

Only after she uttered the last words, she realized she was talking about herself. 

Sending Sergio to prison had been the biggest mistake of her life, and it was starting to seem like he'd never truly forgiven her for it. It had to be her he'd been thinking about when he started planning his revenge on the police. It had been her who had caused all this misery, after all. Why else would he have included her information in the leak without hesitation? Hell, her folder was probably the first one he'd started with.

"You have no grounds to judge me, Raquel," he said sternly. "You do that every day in your job. You lock away people who have done only one mistake in their life. I see no difference."

The words slipped out of her mouth before she could stop them. "You robbed the Royal Mint. That is not one small mistake."

In an instant, the look in Sergio's eyes hardened to fury.

"And I have done 8 years of penance for it, alone, not knowing I had a daughter and with my brother dead. Is that not enough for you?"

And with that, it was confirmed. He had not forgiven. _How could he?_

Raquel's stomach dropped to her knees, and regret swallowed her whole.

Sergio's expression softened a little, but there was still anguish in his eyes. He sighed and turned away to look out of the window, rubbing his hands over his eyes.

He began with a pained voice: "You still see me as a criminal. That is why you won't come with me, and I won't force you. It is better this way. But I _will_ do right by you and Paula. I- I care for you more than you can imagine. And I'm sorry, I realize it has been terribly selfish of me to keep you so close these past few days…"

His voice faded away as her thoughts grew louder in her head. How could she have been foolish enough to believe they could just go on like nothing had happened, in love as ever? There was too much pain in their past to wipe away. Sergio had seen it, but she couldn't. 

She felt like an idiot. Never once he'd told her he loved her this month, and still, she'd thought….

It was too heartbreaking to think about.

Sergio rested his hands on the windowsill with a shudder. This conversation had to be extremely painful for him. She understood. He still cared for her tremendously and wanted to protect her, but that was as far as it went. She was his duty as someone he once loved and the mother of his child, but nothing more. 

He was a robber, and she was the cop who had put him away. It could never have worked out.

Sergio turned to look at her. His eyes looked bloodshot.

"Raquel, I…"

"Don't worry. I'm not going to tell anyone," she sniffled out.

With that said, she walked out of the door before Sergio could see her shatter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More about how Sergio's plan works in the next chapter.
> 
> I'm sorry.


	23. Chapter 23

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You can probably forgive me for being busy today haha. But I'm glad I still managed to deliver you one chapter. The last one is going up tomorrow (hey, it'll still be Christmas!)

The plan to escape was relatively simple.

All that was needed was the help of his teammates, one impatient government employee, a trained Australian kelpie and the carelessness that enveloped the whole nation in the tranquility of the Christmas Eve.

Sergio woke up without an alarm clock and marched downstairs where Rio was already waiting for him, the equipment in his hand. Everyone else around them were committed to their tasks in perfect synchronization. Each step of his escape had been rehearsed so vigorously that even Sergio's thinking was in automation. That was good. There was no space for thoughts of Raquel.

Sergio set his foot on the stool and Rio set to work on his ankle monitor.

At the same time in Madrid, a man by the name of Juan Carmona would leave his post 42 minutes in advance so he could hit the road before the Christmas rush settled in. He'd told about this plan to his girlfriend in a messaging app that had been very easy to hack. For exactly 42 minutes, Sergio's electronic tag would be unmonitored with no to see it go dark.

That was their window.

Poor Carmona who'd be so sure that Sergio would spend Christmas in his bed like all the previous years. After this, he'd be so fired even his grandchildren would have trouble seeking employment. But it'd be alright. Perhaps Sergio would send him a little gift of gratitude: 10,000 euros ought to cover the Christmas of his dreams.

The ankle monitor opened with a click, and Rio handed it to Tokyo who already had the tiny backpack ready. She stuffed the device in and left, perfectly in schedule.

After that, Rio cocked his brow quizzically at him.

"Raquel?" 

"Not coming," was Sergio's terse answer.

Rio exchanged looks with Nairobi who was wearing an unhappy frown. Sergio ignored them and turned swiftly to Oslo and Helsinki. "You ready?"

The two men nodded and handed Sergio his clothes. He'd need a lot of warm layers to get through today.

Mónica, Denver, Moscow and the kids had already left. They'd drive through the mountain pass of Col du Portalet, the nearest border crossing to France and stop by the frontier post. During Christmastime, it was only staffed with one person, the elderly señor Menendez who passed his time mostly filling out crossword puzzles for the lack of anything else to do. Hardly anyone used this crossing during winter, and the man was comfortable in the knowledge that he would only have to work if the dangerous criminal residing in the area would try to pass. Even then, he'd only have to notify the border patrol with a single phone call and sit comfortably in his seat as they took care of it.

This Christmas, he would fail at that single task.

At exactly noon, Denver and his family would arrive and present the man the falsified documents Nairobi had made them. Denver would ask for directions which would lead to a long conversation where pictures of grandchildren would inevitably be presented and talked profusely about.

In the meanwhile, Tokyo will cross the border with her mountain bike which Menendez would have noticed had he not been stuck in the most amiable conversation. She would make it as far as to the tiny, mountainous town of Cachette where she'd find the farm belonging to one of their partners in crime. Senõra Galeas would help her stash the bike inside a fake wall. Then they'd strap the tiny backpack Tokyo had been carrying onto the back of a kelpie Galeas had been taking care of. The loyal little dog had been trained to run marathons and today, he would run one toward the western coast of France. 

After the dog had been set off, a colleague of Carmona would finally notice the electronic tag had been turned off. After they'd manage to turn it back on again, the ankle monitor would be fast on its way to Bayonne where they would hurriedly deduce Sergio had a ship waiting for him.

That was where the border patrol and every single police officer in the area would be sent. 

Of course, what they didn't know was that Sergio would only be crossing the border at that point, and he would be heading to an entirely different direction with Helsinki and Oslo as his bodyguards.

Hiking through these mountains in the cold of winter would be a hardship unlike anything else, but he was ready. He'd been preparing this for years, after all.

He looked at his watch. If all went well, he'd be on a plane and the leak would go online in exactly three hours.

"Merry Christmas," he muttered to himself and took his first step on the rocky terrain.

* * *

Meanwhile, Raquel was furiously packing her bags while Paula watched her, her lips pursed into the most displeased frown.

"I thought we were going to spend Christmas here," the girl grumbled.

"Change of plans," Raquel sighed, desperately trying to zip up her suitcase. "Cinci and his family and the other grown-ups had to leave. It'd be boring without them here, anyway. We'll have much more fun in the city."

 _And she'd rather leave herself than be escorted by Sergio's henchmen_ , she thought.

"Did papa have to leave too?" 

Hearing her call him that was like a punch to her ribs. Raquel swallowed down a lump in her throat and let her shoulders slump. 

"Papa… papa has his own life and plans. But that doesn't mean he cares for you any less."

As her answer, Paula approached her and gave her a little hug. "Don't be sad, mama. I'm sorry it didn't work out between you two."

Raquel shook her head incredulously. _God, Paula has spent way too much time watching romantic dramas._

"It's- it's alright. Just go pack your own bag and I'll take out the garbage."

Paula skittered off and Raquel grabbed the trash bag. It felt light in her hands and wasn't even half full. They'd hardly had use for it after spending so much time in Sergio's cottage. 

And again, something reminded her of him. She clenched her jaw, clutched the bag in her hand and marched out.

As she opened the door, there was a pile of black folders greeting her on the doormat. Raquel froze. The trash bag was instantly forgotten, and her hands found their way to the folders instead. 

It was impossible, but they looked like copies of the information packages Sergio was about to leak.

She looked at the names on the covers. There were Ángel, Suárez and other people she knew. On the bottom of the pile, there was a folder with her name on it. Breath caught in her throat.

Perhaps his heart hadn't been cold enough to deny her to read her own folder, after all.

She felt a flicker of warmth at the realization that even in the midst of implementing his plan, he'd still managed to find time to have these delivered to her. She quickly stifled it. Letting her know what she and her colleagues had ahead of them was the least he could do.

She returned back inside and spread the folders on her kitchen table. She began going through them one by one.

The more she read, the more her faith in humanity shriveled.

Ángel Rubio: driving under influence, sexual harassment and abuse of his position. Suárez: anything from excessive violence to bribe-taking to destroying evidence. She could hardly even skim through everything in her supervisor's folder.

With a grimace, she slammed it shut. One thing was confirmed; she really didn't know anything about the people she worked with.

There was a nagging thought at the back of her head, telling her that maybe Sergio had been right. Perhaps they were no better than them, after all.

Raquel scoffed to herself. What was he trying to do here? Teach her one last lesson?

She resented the thought so much she was about to chuck the last folder, her own, into the fire. There was no need to see for herself what Sergio had managed to find out about her. She knew what she had done. Most likely, she'd be faced with descriptions of every single mistake she'd made during the investigation of the robbery in Royal Mint and she had no desire to relive those memories.

But then the more rational part of her stirred. She _should_ take a look if only to prepare herself for what was to come. She'd need to think of something to say to all those reporters that would undoubtedly come knocking on her door.

So she opened the folder.

There was only one blank paper inside. She blinked in astonishment.

She turned the paper. There wasn't anything on the other side either. 

She grabbed the folder, turned it upside down and started shaking it in the vain hope it would yield something. Anything. 

This just couldn't be it. There had to be at least one line about the Royal Mint if nothing else. Sergio had said that no one would get out scot-free. _So what was this?_

In the end, a small piece of paper floated down. It had been tucked inside the lapel of the folder with such care it seemed that person who had hidden it almost didn't want it to be found. Raquel instantly grabbed it.

She began to read.

  
_I hear you, Raquel._

_There were good people who have done only one mistake in their lives were included in the leak. I wiped their folder clean._

_You are one of them._

_Your only mistake was falling for me, and I want to absolve you of it. That is why I am leaving you this blank paper. Know that when I think you in the future, I will remember nothing else but those beautiful days I got to spend with you and our daughter, the greatest gift you could ever have given me._

_What I am giving you in return is your freedom._

_You must be thinking right now that I'll get to be free too after the plan is carried out today and I'll be far away from you. But that is not true. I learned in prison that I'll stop breathing first before I stop loving you._

_That cross I'll bear with pleasure. Having known you is worth it all._

  
_Yours faithfully, Sergio_

  
She read the note again and again until it was etched into her heart. Finally, Raquel lowered the paper from her shaking hands. 

After a few minutes of sitting still and just staring in front of her, Raquel shot up.

She knew what she needed to do.


	24. Chapter 24

"All packed now," Paula said and carried her backpack outside where her mother had just slammed the trunk shut. 

Without missing a beat, Raquel turned to her and snatched it from her hands.

"Great, cariño. Because we have to go. Right now."

Before Paula could answer, Raquel whisked her up in the air, backpack and all, and carried her to the car. 

"Where are we going?" the girl asked, confused, as Raquel hurried to strap her in.

"France."

The girl's brow leaped up and her mouth curved into an excited smile. "France?"

"We're going after papa because he's the biggest moron in the world and I need to have a word with him."

Paula smiled. "Okay."

Raquel leaped behind the steering wheel and gripped it tightly.

_If only she had any idea where he was going._

She chose the direction toward Sergio's cottage and stepped on the gas. The newly repaired car's engine roared out and soon they were on their way, snow spurting beneath the tires.

 _Let him still be there. Let him still be there_ , she prayed.

He wasn't there. 

The cottage was empty and dark. Raquel ran around the house, looking through every window while Paula waited in the car. It was no use. It was if no one had never even lived there.

Dejected, Raquel returned to the car.

"Don't give up, mama," Paula urged. "Maybe he stopped by the store to get some sweets for his trip."

Raquel sighed. "Maybe."

Next, she dashed to the town. She had very little hope she would come across anything that would lead the way to Sergio, but dawdling wouldn't certainly help anything.

However, the road was blocked by another car driving at snail speed. Raquel tooted her horn violently.

A head poked out of the window of the other car, cursing. "The road is slippery, hothead. We're going as fast as we can, so calm the fuck down-" Nairobi's eyes widened as she recognized the person she was yelling at as Raquel. 

"Inspectora!"

Raquel leaped out and ran to the other car. Rio was behind the wheel and Nairobi driving shotgun. They were both wearing expressions of amazement.

"I thought you had all left already!" Raquel exhaled.

"We stayed behind to clean up and plant some false evidence for when the police arrive," Rio explained. 

"Where is Sergio?"

"Must be already on his way to cross the border. We are the last ones to leave."

Raquel hissed out a curse.

Nairobi beamed at her. "Does this mean you want to go with him after all? You love each other, I knew it!"

Raquel had no time to confirm or deny anything. "Are you following him to France as well?"

"No, we're going to Madrid. We're going to take care of some loose ends and make sure that everything goes according to plan with the leak. After that, we're leaving the country."

"When is the next time you're going to see him?" Raquel asked, growing more and more desperate.

"We're meeting him at our designated rendezvous point in two weeks' time."

She grimaced. _Two weeks! She couldn't wait that long._

Seeing her frustrated expression, Nairobi adopted a comforting tone. "Don't worry. As soon as we see him again, we'll tell him that you have changed your mind and he'll have you and your daughter brought to him in no time."

"No, he won't. He's too stubborn and too sure in his assumption what is best for us," Raquel scoffed. "The idiot. The only way I could make him see sense would be…"

In an instant, an idea struck her. It was ridiculous and desperate but it was all she had.

"Where exactly are they crossing the border?"

"Oh it's right up-" Rio started, and immediately halted. He glanced at Nairobi doubtfully. "Are we 100% sure she is on our side?"

Nairobi punched him in the shoulder as her answer and took out the map from the glove compartment. She drew a small circle on a mountain slope east of where they were. "Here is the exact spot. But it is a difficult trek. Are you sure?"

Nairobi gave her a look that told Raquel she knew exactly what she was planning on doing. Raquel nodded.

"Can you take my daughter with you to Madrid? I'll give you my mother's address. She'll take Paula."

"Of course," Nairobi said and started hurriedly to make space for Paula in the backseat.

Raquel went to get her daughter.

After she'd explained Paula the situation, the girl begged and begged to go with her. That stopped soon, however, when Nairobi promised Paula could pick the music for their road trip back to the capital and get the rest of their chocolate.

"Deal!" she exclaimed and climbed to the back seat.

Raquel hugged her one last time after strapping her in again. "I love you so much. Be a good girl to grandma. She'll take care of you for a little while."

"Will you and papa come get me then?"

 _Papa_.

Perhaps it didn't sound bad from her mouth, after all.

"We will," Raquel breathed out and smiled so hard her cheeks hurt. "We will."

"You can go as far as 6 kilometers in that direction. Then the road ends. You are going to have to walk the rest of the way," Nairobi instructed.

"Got it!" Raquel shouted, already running to her car. She couldn't waste a single second.

"Hurry! And good luck!" Nairobi called out, and Rio sent her on her way with toots of his horn.

Raquel huffed out a determined breath as she settled behind her own wheel. _She could do this._

She turned on the ignition. _And she would._

* * *

It seemed they'd already been hiking for hours. Sergio had been training for this for what seemed to be a lifetime, but nothing could have prepared him for the strong wind slamming to his face at the same time as his feet sank into the deepest snowbanks of the world. It was if the universe itself was making this as hard as possible for him.

As if leaving was not hard enough already.

"C'mon, professor. We're almost there," Helsinki encouraged and grabbed him by the shoulder.

"Almost as in over the border already?"

He looked into the distance and could only see more mountains in front of him, wrapped up in a white haze.

Helsinki flashed him a good-natured grin. "We'll get there when we get there."

Sergio swallowed down a sigh and focused on putting one foot in front of another. Soon, this all would be over. Soon, his brother and father would get their justice, and soon, he'd walk as a free man again and have everything he'd ever wanted.

 _Almost_ everything.

He killed that last thought. It was no use. Not now, not when he was so near.

He was greeted with another snowy gust on his face. He growled a curse, ducked his head down, gripped at the arms of his backpack and marched onwards despite the overwhelming emptiness he felt growing inside him.

"Uh, professor?" attempted Oslo.

"What is it now?"

"I think someone is following us," Oslo said and pointed behind them. Sergio turned. Indeed, there was a dark figure further down, advancing in a determined speed. Sergio frowned. He had a contingency plan in place in case the border patrol got whiff of them, but nothing in case of a single pursuer.

"Do you want me to take care of him?" Helsinki offered, already taking off his backpack.

"Just fire a warning shot in the air. Maybe that'll scare him away."

Helsinki did just as told, but the man did not halt. He lifted his head as if noticing them for the first time only now and then sped up. To all of their astonishment, the mysterious figure started sprinting towards them like a mountain gazelle. He shouted something, but the wind made it impossible for them to hear him.

"Do I fire again?"

"No. Let's see what he wants first," Sergio grunted. "But keep the gun ready. If he turns out to be hostile, shoot to wound."

Helsinki solemnly nodded.

The figure shouted something again, something that sounded a lot like a shrill request to stop with lots of cursing mixed in. Helsinki frowned while Olso just observed the scene in amusement.

"Call me crazy, but I think he actually sounds like a _she_ ," he chuckled. "Or what do you think, Professor?"

But all that was left of Sergio was his backpack that he'd abandoned beside them. In an instant, he was stumbling down the mountainside with his arms wildly flailing about. Snow slid underneath his boots and almost made him fall, but he did not. Nothing in the world would get him to stop now.

"Raquel," he shouted at the top of his lungs.

"Sergio!" the figure answered in a fervent cry.

"Raquel," Sergio choked out. This time, only he could hear his voice. It was hard to speak, let alone breathe. All he could do was half run, half stumble toward her.

"Sergio!" she called out again, and this time he could see her. She was flushed red and her hair was plastered on her cheeks and she was definitely not wearing the appropriate boots for these mountains, but it was her and she was _smiling_ and running towards him.

He caught her mid-air, wrapping his arms tight around her waist and crushing her against him with enough force to almost send both of them reeling. She buried his face in his shoulder and began laughing or sobbing. It was hard to tell because of the wind.

Sergio cupped her jaw with his gloved hand and turned her face so he could look at her. Her cheeks were wet but she was smiling the most beautiful smile he'd ever seen and it was filling up his heart and oh god, why was she here?

"What- what are you doing here?" 

"You are an idiot," she sniffled out, her voice barely even audible.

Sergio blinked. "Other than to tell me that?"

Peals of laughter burst from her lips and this time he knew it to be laughter; Relieved, hearty laughter that came deep from her lungs.

"You love me," she finally exclaimed.

"I do," Sergio admitted sheepishly. "But what-"

He was interrupted by Raquel grabbing the back of his head and crashing her lips against his.

In an instant, Sergio yielded, wrapping her even tighter against him. She tasted of snow and tears and all he'd ever dreamed about.

However, she pulled apart as quickly as she had launched into the kiss. 

"How could you not expect me to follow you after that note you left?"

Sergio pushed his glasses back up his nose, bewildered. "I was only trying to ease your conscience, make it easier for you to leave-"

"Well, you succeeded in the opposite. You could not make me leave for the world, not when I know how you truly feel. Oh Sergio, I never stopped loving you either. Not for one second."

Sergio didn't know what to say. It felt like his chest was going to burst any second now, and he felt like lying down.

"Are you- are you telling the truth?"

"Of course I am, you moron. I thought- For so long I thought that I couldn't. I suffocated my feelings because you were a criminal and I was supposed to stop you, not long for you. But I was wrong, I was so wrong. I should have listened to you, or my own heart at the very least. Not _them_. Never them."

"But Raquel, I have nothing to offer you," Sergio said, anguished. "You wouldn't want this life. I love you, but I cannot do that to you."

Raquel cradled his face in her hands. "I love you too. I want to spend the rest of my life with you even if it means we never stop running. I choose that life, I choose _you_."

Sergio's throat constricted.

"Does that mean-?" he began.

"Yes, yes, yes," she exhaled, and Sergio silenced her with another kiss, more ferocious and desperate than the last.

He tasted tears from her lips again, but this time some of them were his own. Raquel kissed her back, tenderly wiping the wetness from his cheeks.

_Eight years. Eight long years he'd thought he'd lost her forever._

Raquel understood. She held her as he cried softly out of happiness because truly, it felt like he'd not been happy before this moment.

"Our daughter?" he asked with a shaking voice the next time they broke away to catch their breaths.

"She is with my mother." Then she smiled so hard her eyes crinkled. " _Our_ daughter is safe and waiting for us."

"Our daughter," Sergio confirmed and smiled as well, tears blurring his vision. "We'll go get her after this and I'm never letting go of her again. _Never_."

Raquel vigorously nodded, sniffling. 

"And that goes to you too. I'm never letting you go again. So, last chance to get out is now."

"I'm already here, mi amor. If I didn't really want this, I'd doubt I would have just clambered over these rocks for hours to find you."

Sergio let out a hoarse laugh. He ran his thumb softly across her cheek, caressing her beautiful face. She looked up at him with sparkling eyes. He loved her so much at this moment that he wouldn't have minded staying here forever, at the top of the world, with her in his arms.

"Hey, Professor, are you coming or not?" called out Helsinki, bringing them back to reality.

"Just a moment," Raquel shouted back and burst into another fit of soft laughter, closing her eyes and resting her head on his shoulder. Sergio kissed her eyelids tenderly and lifted his head to look into the distance. 

Together, they studied the tiny dark dot that was the village they'd left. An odd sort of wistfulness filled him. He'd been so miserable there, and yet…

"Let's go," Raquel whispered in his arms.

And so they did.

* * *

"But when pain is over, the remembrance of it often becomes a pleasure."  
**― Jane Austen, Persuasion**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Epilogue for those who wish to read one in the next chapter


	25. Chapter 25

  
**Excerpt from a radio show on channel 4, Christmas 2020.**

  
_New developments in the case of Sergio Marquina's famous escape! Or are there?_

_As we all know, last Christmas our favorite bank robber cut his probation short and fled to France, and no one knows where from there. Probably shouldn't have placed him so near the border, should they, dear listeners? Just a day later, his name was connected to the biggest information leak in the history of Spain. That's what I call a proper Christmas revenge!_

_Ever since he vanished, the now completely reformed police forces have made little progress in tracking him down._ _But for the first time in forever, we have news. According to my source, it seems that the simultaneous disappearance of a police officer Marquina had a bone to pick with might not be have lead into a tragedy, after all. In fact, it looks like the two might have settled their differences and gotten hitched!_

_This information comes from Alonso Espin who used to rent cottages in the Pyrenees, one of them belonging to the notorious Marquina. He claims to have received a Christmas card from the man himself!_

_According to the man, Marquina poses in the card with his daughter and the vanished police officer Raquel Murillo who seems to be his wife now, believe it or not! He says that the man couldn't look happier and more in love with the cop in his arms. Huh, talk about opposites attract! Espin also claims the pair might be expecting another addition to their family judging by Murillo's loose sweater. I'd have to see for myself to speculate about that, haha._

_Similar claims about having received a Christmas card from the merry family were made by a former government employee Juan Carmona. The claims were soon withdrawn, however, when the police started digging into the large sum of money that had been transferred into his bank account last Christmas. We can only wonder why…_

_As exciting as this all sounds, we'll have to take this all with a grain of salt. No one except for Espin has actually seen the card and he refuses to present it to the authorities, telling them all to leave the poor man the heck alone._

_This is a family show, so you'll have to excuse me for switching out the actual word he used to a more appropriate one._

_Anyway, let us all believe in a world slightly more magical where all of this is real, even just for this single moment, and wish señor Marquina and his family happy holidays, wherever they are._

_From the bottom of my heart, merry Christmas to all you too._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading and commenting. This was a lot of work, but I am so glad I did it and shared this story with you all. Now I'll curl up under a blanket and cry because it is over.
> 
> I hope you had the most wonderful Christmas.


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